The Assassin's Bullet
by CanisLupusHorribilis
Summary: New Years Eve. The time of fun, happiness, and getting wasted drunk. But for the survivors of the Harvardville incident, New Years Eve is only the beginning of a game of cat and mouse that must be either won or lost. Full summary inside.
1. Chapter 1

The Assassin's Bullet

Summary: New Years Eve. The time of fun, happiness, and getting wasted drunk. But not for Leon. Not for the man who finds himself hunting after the deadliest assassin in America with only two women and a child for help. But can Leon bring himself to stop the assassin? The very assassin who is a part of him he can't let go? And can he stop her while outbreaks begin sprouting like wildfires around the country? Or is America doomed to fall to the deadly T-Virus?

A/N: This story was born from watching Degeneration five times on New Years Eve. (Sorry if the summary sucks. I had the hardest time summarizing this story.) Pairings include: Leon/Ada, mostly one-sided Leon/Angela, and possibly something with Claire if I can think of anything. Or rather, anybody. (Not Leon, so don't even ask.) Rated M for: Violence, language, and innuendo.

Disclaimer: I own nothing… I'm sorry to break that to you.

---Harvardville, October 28th---

Bullets were too messy when getting up-close and personal with the kill. In the movies, assassins sat in buildings far away from their target with a high powered rifle and shot the target when they had the chance. Then, they'd run away and only sometimes would the assassin get caught.

However, unlike what they show in movies, assassins loved getting up-close with their target. It gave them a thrill, a rush of adrenaline that could only be produced by standing next to the person as they breathed their last breath. As they prayed for their family or bribed the man, or woman, that was preparing to kill them.

But the assassins never used guns when they were up-close, unless the situation got desperate. Bullets were too messy and they had no true class.

That's why the assassin decided that cyanide would be the proper death. She'd never used it before, though she did carry around her own personal cyanide pill just in case she got captured. But never before had she watched its destructive capabilities occur on a target of hers.

The guards were more than willing to let the pretty woman into the fat lard's apartment, barely searching her as they drooled over her looks. She inwardly smiled, thinking that the ex-senator should've asked for Secret Service to stay around just a little while longer. They were much better at keeping assassins out.

She walked to the man's room on the top floor of his personal estate, her right hand's fingers messing with the silken dress she was clad in. The pills were tucked safely away in the locket she kept around her neck, something she'd had since her survival from the city of the dead seven years ago. It was a big locket, almost gaudy, but she rarely went anywhere without it anymore.

"I hope that's room service because if not…" ex-Senator Ron Davis growled, his voice intolerable and already grating on the woman's nerves. She rolled her eyes and walked into the room.

"Sorry to disappoint you," she said, her voice a seductive purr. Davis spun around in his computer chair, his eyes widening in several emotions at the sight of the crimson clad beauty.

"Who the hell are you?" Davis asked, his hand lowering to go for the concealed weapon. She knew it was there and she knew exactly what it was. A snub-nosed .38. A nice gun, if he wasn't dealing with the deadliest assassin this side of Earth.

"Nobody you want to know," she assured. "You apparently haven't learned your place, Senator. …You don't mind me calling you that, do you? Of course you don't. Unfortunate, what happened to WilPharma. Though, I suppose you should be glad that Tricell offered to take over for you."

"Get out of here," Davis snarled, grabbing his gun. Before he could even bring his hand around to point the gun at her face, she was closer to him, pressing a knife that she'd hidden on her left thigh to his throat. He made a choking noise and the .38 slid from his hands. It landed with a thumping noise on the floor.

"Now be a good senator and swallow these for me," she ordered, opening the locket and letting the pills fall into her hand. Four pills. Enough concentrated cyanide to drop a horse. More than enough for the pig in man's clothes sitting before her. Davis stared at her and she smiled cruelly. "I'll just pry your mouth open if I must. Now, open up. I don't want to make your face any more hideous than it already is."

Davis did as ordered and she dropped the pills into his mouth, not daring to get her skin anywhere near his rancid mouth. He closed his mouth and she just smiled.

"Bite down on them Senator. It won't hurt a bit. You'll just, go to sleep. It's actually quicker, and quieter, then euthanasia," she said somberly. His eyes glazed over and he bit down on the pills. She heard his teeth meet resistance, followed by the sound of them coming together. Then, as quickly as it began, it was over. The senator's eyes rolled back into his head and his body went limp. Now came the hard part.

_"Make it look like suicide."_

She sighed and pulled a pair of leather gloves from her thigh holster, replacing the blade into its designated spot. Pulling the gloves on, she looked the room over. She would find some alcohol, find some sleeping pills, and turn the senator back to his desk while the news blared that Tricell was taking over WilPharma. Then, she would order the computer to dump its files, erasing all of its evidence that connected the senator to WilPharma, Tricell, Umbrella, and Raccoon City.

_After this… I'm going for a drink…_

---Washington D.C., December 27th---

Leon had heard as a child that upon discovering that you were in a dream, your subconscious was supposed to wake you up. According to the people that said such, it was a defense mechanism of some sort. Leon guessed it was from nightmares or things like that.

Well, such was true for three years after Raccoon City's ultimate destruction. Leon found himself reliving parts of the city but being able to wake upon realizing he was indeed dreaming and not really running through the zombie infested city. But then something happened. He stopped being able to wake up from these nightmares. Instead, the cop turned agent was forced to relive Raccoon City. Over and over again.

But that didn't mean Leon didn't realize he was dreaming. He knew that the very hell he was then walking through was indeed a dream, no matter how real it was. Memories pressed in on the man, forcing his subconscious self to feel the heat and forcing sweat to roll down his chest and arms. His dream-self reeked of death and decay, his uniform covered in gore and other less-than-pleasant things. His dream body was fatigued and practically useless, only being able to drag itself forward by sheer will-power and the instinctive need to live, to survive.

The liquefied metal below him, even though it was still only a dream, caused the rookie police officer a great deal of discomfort as he walked across the catwalk. His boots clunked obnoxiously loud and didn't in any way help with his headache. Leon tried to convince himself to stop, to prevent what was about to happen, but he found his voice gone and his body acting like it was controlled by an invisible force.

Not surprisingly, the young cop heard the sound of even heavier boots behind him. The tyrant had arrived. It was time for Leon's nightmare to truly begin.

The young man turned to see the T-103 walking towards him, its lifeless eyes focused on him with no emotions at all. Leon wondered if he would be able to see fury in the beast's eyes this time. He had last time.

His thoughts, dream thoughts, were cut off by a solid fist smashing into his sternum, throwing him back into the wall that the catwalk connected to. The Desert Eagle he'd been clutching loosely in his right hand fell to the catwalk with a loud pinging noise. In real life, the air had been torn from his lungs, but in the dream he didn't truly react. In the dream, he was simply thrown back and then fell to his knees, simulating what really happened. Then, an angel decided to grant mercy on the naïve cop.

Several gunshots rang out and bloody holes appeared in its chest, small fountains of blood oozing from the holes immediately afterwards. "Leon, run!" a familiar voice. A voice that, in his dreams, caused tears to threaten in the typically stoic man's eyes.

"Ada!" he cried, bringing himself to his feet. She looked at him, taking her focus away from the monster for a split second. But that split second was enough. In real life, and in the dream, the cop recognized sorrow in her green eyes. Sorrow and acceptance.

She emptied her clip into the monster, hardly slowing it down at all. With reflexes that even the seasoned agent Leon had become hadn't had, she snapped up a new clip and started to slam it into her gun when the creature's fist, probably clammy and cold, snapped out and grasped her by the throat. The cop lunged for his Desert Eagle, which had landed near the edge of the catwalk and was dangerously teetering on the edge of the metal floor. By the time he'd manage to grab the weapon, the dream Leon would be too late. Just like the real one.

A gasping noise escaped the woman as she was lifted into the air by the seven and a half foot tall monster. But, with a weak smile, Ada placed the muzzle of her nine millimeter against the beast's forehead and pulled the trigger four consecutive times. The last two bullets crashed through the beast's skull and pinged off the catwalk before losing all of their momentum.

The monster, without a sound, clamped its free hand to its ruined face and hurled the woman away from itself. She smashed into the huge computer, back first, and fell to the ground where she landed on her knees and gripped her bloody side. Blood oozed from the wound given to her by Birkin and from her newest wounds as well. And her mouth. And nose.

As the monster stumbled away from Ada and her ever growing pool of blood, Leon raced to her side. And here's where the dream became real. Too real.

Leon forced himself to stop, collapsing to his knees into the puddle of blood. The crimson liquid seeped through the thick cloth of his pants and touched his skin, not that the dream-self would feel. Leon's memories of the way it had felt, however, made the dream even more real than before. In real life, Leon had whispered her name pointlessly, trying to deny that the woman he'd grown to care so much about…no… That the woman he'd grown to _love _was fading away, falling into the eternal depths that were death.

"Leon…" she whispered weakly as he wrapped his arms around her, letting her rest against the cool Kevlar plate that covered his chest. "Please… Escape."

The dream-self had tears in his eyes, something that hadn't happened in a long time. He shook his head, stating, "No. We're a team. I can't just…leave you behind." Using the last remains of her strength, Ada pushed herself away from him and looked into his eyes.

With a weak shake of her head, the Eurasian woman whimpered, "I'm just…a woman…who fell in love with you… Nothing more."

To his amazement, and somewhat to his horror, the dream seemed to be fading. The catwalk and the smashed computer and the molten metal were all vanishing, being replaced by black. The cop desperately looked down, hoping that the woman was still there. But Ada Wong had faded away too, replaced by the cold emptiness that Secret Agent Leon Kennedy had become accustomed to.

The agent groggily reached out and grabbed the very thing that had woken him; his government issue PDA. The screen, much too bright for a man who'd just woken up, flashed a single name to him. Ingrid Hunnigan. His contact. He pushed the button on the screen to accept the call, but he made sure to cancel any video feed. He didn't need Hunnigan seeing him after his nightmare. The nightmare that had, once again, made him break out in a cold sweat and thrash around enough to knock his blankets and sheets to the floor below.

"Leon?" Hunnigan asked, her voice loud in the quiet room. The soft tones of Led Zeppelin spilled out of Leon's radio but it was quiet enough that even Hunnigan couldn't hear it.

"I'm here, Hunnigan," Leon grumbled, feeling the ever bitter emotions build as his body realized it wasn't getting any sleep. Again.

"I'm sorry that I woke you up early… But… You need to turn on your TV. Go to channel five. It's pretty damned important," Hunnigan said, her no-nonsense voice forcing the agent from his sweat soaked bed and into the living room.

Clad in his jeans, T-shirt, and socks from the prior day, Leon turned on the TV and let the bright screen fill the living room with light. Using the remote, he turned it to channel five, Washington D.C.'s news channel.

"Foul play was not suspected at first, though recent discoveries have changed the minds of authorities. Again, this is Sandra Cunnings, reporting on ex-Senator Ron Davis' apparent murder," a blonde reporter said, her face lacking emotions other than slight excitement burning in her eyes. She did, after all, get to cover the death of a famous senator twice in one year. Back in October, after his cold corpse had been found by a secretary and now again. This time, however, she was dealing with a murder, not a suicide. Murders were always so much more interesting.

"Shit," Leon snarled. Hunnigan, he imagined, was simply nodding.


	2. Chapter 2

The Assassin's Bullet

---Airplane, December 27th---

The gentle rumble of the plane as it flew miles above the Earth was beginning to put Angela Miller to sleep. Her head rested against the closed window, her hair in a ponytail instead of a bun like she would usually keep it in. Every now and then somebody would cough, shortly breaking the silence on the large 767 Boeing aircraft. But then the cough would stop and the silence would return tenfold.

The plane had only become this eerily quiet about an hour ago and Angela had to wonder if it was because they would be landing in the newly opened Harvardville Airport. Almost all of America knew about the outbreak that had occurred in the airport only two and a half months ago and even though the airport had been thoroughly sanitized, the T-Virus wiped clean from the terminal, people still weren't comfortable with landing there. Hell, even Angela wasn't comfortable landing there. After all, that's where Greg had died.

She closed her eyes, trying to forget that last image she had of him. His blank face dribbling blood from his lips and nose. His helmet loosely sitting on his head and his uniform in ruined tatters. Tears threatened to spill from Angela's shut eyes.

A loud banging noise shattered the silence, causing several people to lunge up in their seats and look around in shock. Angela was one of these people. She opened her eyes, the threat of tears fading immediately. She looked around, her deep blue eyes bewildered. She swallowed thickly, remembering how much she hated flying and how bad of an idea it was to fly back to Harvardville instead of taking a method that used the ground instead.

"Don't worry, everyone," the stewardess said confidently, walked down the hallway. She looked calm enough but Angela could sense unease behind the woman's steady mask. "It was just turbulence."

Another loud banging noise caused a ripple of disgruntled whispering to start in the plane. Angela looked at the floor, her teeth grinding silently, as a young man asked, "Does turbulence cause things in the plane to bang around like that?"

Before the woman could respond, the floor of the plane exploded upwards in shards of metal and carpet. Angela heard people screaming in horror but her eyes focused on what was forcing its way out of the belly of the plane. Its skull was reptilian and almost fish-like, with only one of its milky eyes in tact. Its right shoulder raised up in a massive tower-like growth, almost like a malignant tumor stuck in the flesh and bone of the creature. But worst of all was the right bicep, where an enormous eyeball rested. That eyeball was rolling in its socket wildly, searching for something and when it landed on Angela, an excited growl escaped the grotesque monster.

"Curtis," Angela whispered as the monster lifted the rest of its body out of the hole. What was once her brother lifted its monstrous right arm that ended in gigantic claws and pointed the deadly tips in Angela's direction. She felt her mouth open in horror, a scream building in her throat as it drove those claws towards her, when a strong hand grabbed her shoulder and jerked her awake.

---Harvardville, December 27th---

"This is Angela Miller's phone. I'm not here at the moment but leave a message and I'll be sure to get back to you as soon as possible."

"Hey Angela, it's Claire. I checked your mail, like you asked, and guess what. We were invited to the New Years Eve dance held by President Graham himself. Can you believe that? Well, I mean, you are S.R.T. so I guess you're used to getting all kinds of stuff to do with the government but me… Wow, my brother would flip if he knew… Well, I was just trying to tell you about the invitation. I'll see you when you get home! Bye."

Claire clicked her cell phone shut and glanced at Rani and her aunt. The three of them had taken to living in an apartment in Harvardville until Rani's aunt got a permanent job elsewhere. The child looked at Claire quietly, an unspoken question in her bright eyes.

"Does that mean you're going away?" she asked, her accented voice saddened at the idea of Claire leaving.

"Well, for about five days… But…maybe, you can come with me?" Claire offered, kneeling down to look Rani in the eyes. The girl turned to her aunt, her wide chocolate eyes hopeful. Both women knew that Rani had taken to treating Claire as her mother, after what they'd gone through in the airport terminal. But Rani's aunt was still her authority.

"Do you think you can handle her, surrounded by all of those big government types?" the Indian woman asked, smiling at Claire. The redhead grinned back.

"Of course. After all, I have no doubt in my mind Leon and Angela will be there. Rani and I will just hide behind Leon," she replied. Rani looked at Claire happily. She'd also taken to Leon and Angela, since both agent and S.R.T. member had protected her as well.

"Then, you may go, Rani. Maybe I'll get a job while you're both in D.C. Wouldn't that be a great way to start 2006," the older woman laughed. Rani cried out happily and hugged her aunt, thanking her over and over.

_Now… To get a hold of Leon…_

Claire felt her smile fade. Like the seven years between Raccoon City and Harvardville, Claire had found it impossible to stay in true contact with Leon. Other than that one email, the agent had once again vanished off the face of the Earth. She knew that Angela had been hurt by Leon's disappearance and Claire had to hope that he really would be at the dance.

_After what they went through, I don't get why he doesn't keep in contact with her… I know there's something between those two. And if I have to play Cupid to get them together, so be it._

---Airplane, December 27th---

"Are you alright, ma'am?" a deep voice asked, startling Angela out of her sleep. The woman turned to the man sitting next to her. The plane she was in didn't have a massive hole in the floor of it and people weren't screaming. The man sitting next to her gave her a silent, but concerned, look. She wasn't in her dream plane, where she'd been sitting alone. No, she had two other people sitting in the row of seats with her.

"Um…yeah, I was just having nightmares….That's all," she assured. "You know, surviving a zombie outbreak can be pretty scary."

"You survived Harvardville's outbreak?" the man asked, his eyes widening with several emotions. She was shocked to notice that respect was one of the emotions in his dark eyes. She nodded and felt her phone vibrate against her leg.

"Sorry, my phone," she said to the man, making him nod and turn away.

She flipped the black cell phone open, shocked to see that she had a voicemail from Claire. Angela couldn't truly hide the disappointment she felt. Leon still hadn't called her or tried to get into contact with her. He'd sent both her and Claire emails to assure their safety from any threats thrown at them and that was it. After that, she'd found that his number had been changed and that he'd basically disappeared.

_Why won't you call?_

---Washington D.C. December 27th---

"Black shirt or blue shirt?" Leon asked himself, throwing his shoulder harness onto the bed. "Such a difficult choice." His closet was full of black, blue, and grey. He didn't really bother with clothes anymore, since the government was beginning to rule his life. "Mom would always say blue, since somehow it brought out the color in my eyes." He grabbed a black T-shirt and tossed it onto his bed. "Mom also said that I was a moron for joining the police force." He ruffled his hair in an attempt to dry it faster and felt a yawn building up.

"Which way to work today?" He stopped the yawn, forcing him to shake his head bitterly. "Long or short?" His hands dropped to his sides and his hair fell messily into his face. "Short. No point in taking too much time to get to the office." He lifted the T-shirt and tugged it on, letting the hem of the shirt fall over his belt.

Leon was about to tuck his shirt in when he remembered what Hunnigan had told him earlier that morning. After he'd watched the news about Davis' assassination, she'd told him that he'd be accompanying the President to the huge New Years Eve dance in a few days. That was not something the agent looked forward to. That meant that he would have to wear a suit, and sunglasses, and look proper and knowing his luck somebody would expect them to dance with him. Fun.

_Make things fun. Hope that a certain lady will show up._

Sadly, Leon wasn't certain which lady he wanted to show up. He closed his eyes for a moment, picturing Angela. But the image faded and was instantly replaced by a woman whose beauty was incomparable.

A/N: Sorry if it was boring. Just setting up the story. Also, I don't know if Rani's aunt has a name so I apologize for that. Next chapter is when the story actually starts to get better.


	3. Chapter 3

The Assassin's Bullet

---Unknown, December 29th---

"I need you to do this for me, Agent," a deep voice ordered through her PDA. Her fingers were curled tightly around the small mechanical device, her crimson painted fingernails biting into the plastic as much as they could without causing damage to either.

"You know I can't stand flying… And… I can't do that to him," she replied, letting her raven colored hair fall into her face. The man sighed stiffly and she pictured him reclining in his huge leather chair and rubbing his face with his hand.

"I'm sorry, Agent. I_ know _how much it hurts you to do these kinds of things to him. But would you rather trick him or let the other thing happen to him?" the man asked icily.

She clenched her jaw and looked out over the world. She stood on a cliff that overlooked a large city. Even though the moon wasn't out and the sky was black, the city remained illuminated with the lights pouring from the buildings. Sometimes she just wished she could escape into the city, hide in the lights of the buildings, and be free from the life she was living.

"I don't want anything to happen to him," she started bitterly. "And I won't do this to him anymore."

"Then, it will be your fault when he drops to the floor dead with a bullet in his heart," he finally barked, letting his fury grab a hold of him. The older man's steady voice broke and she knew hell was about to break loose. "It'll be your fault that I can never repay him. It'll be your fault an innocent dies. Again."

"You should've repaid him after he brought that brat of yours home last year!" she snapped in return.

"Do the mission, Agent. This is the last time I'll offer that. It's the last chance you get to save his life," he replied, breathing heavily. She could hear the strain in his voice to keep calm. She had, after all, just insulted his precious child.

She closed her eyes, picturing the man they were speaking of. Two choices, trick him or let him die. Without opening her eyes, the raven haired woman breathed, "I'll do it."

"Good. He'll understand when we tell him the truth," the man promised. She scoffed bitterly.

_After this, I doubt I'll get anywhere near him without him threatening my life…_

"Of course," she said stiffly, hiding her true feelings. She managed to hide away the fury that was building in the pit of her stomach.

"Good. I'll see you at the dance, Agent Wong," the man said calmly, sounding triumphant.

"I'll see you at the dance, Mr. President."

---Washington D.C., December 31st---

Claire walked into the huge building with Rani at her side. Other than the obvious skin tone difference, they could've been considered relatives, especially since they were both clad in long-sleeved, pink dresses that reached their knees. Claire was wearing pink heels and Rani had chosen pink flats.

"Can you see Leon or Angela?" Claire asked Rani as they walked through the huge crowd. Rani looked up at her and the redhead found herself laughing. "Sorry… Guess you should've been the one asking me that, huh?" she chuckled. The young girl nodded her head before she pointed.

Near the President, who was pretty much standing out like a sore thumb, was Leon Kennedy. The tall agent looked absolutely miserable, his head low. He was wearing a black suit and tie, actually looking like a government agent. Claire noticed, slightly bitterly, that he was wearing sunglasses too, like all Secret Service agents were ordered to.

The President said something to him, causing the blond man to bob his head faintly, and walk away from the group of Secret Service protecting the President. Another man joined Leon and they stopped and stood together at a long table where drinks and food were being served. Rani broke free from Claire's grip and ran to the agent.

---

Something smacked into Leon's legs, causing the relaxed agent to tense up immediately. But the thing was too small to be a threat and Jonathon, one of the few agents he considered a friend, cast him a sly smirk.

"Don't even," Leon warned the older man as Rani pulled away from him. She looked up at him as he knelt down to look her in the eyes. "What are you doing here, Rani?" he asked.

"Claire and I came here for the dance," Rani explained. He looked up as somebody clad in a dress that matched Rani's walked up. He looked up and Claire smiled down at him.

"I hope you don't mind, Mr. Kennedy," she said. Leon heard Jonathon scoff loudly from his side.

"He don't like it when people call him Mister, ma'am," Jonathon said calmly. Leon cast him a dark look and stood as Rani returned to Claire's side. The redhead cast the other secret agent a quiet look. "Sorry, where's my manners. I'm Jonathon Michaels. And you are?"

"Claire Redfield," she replied pleasantly, offering Jonathon a hand.

"You're one of the women Leon here survived Raccoon with, right?" the older man asked as he shook Claire's hand. But the woman's eyes darkened with confusion.

"What do you mean 'one of the women'? I was the only woman," Claire stated. Jonathon glanced at Leon, who was staring at his dress shoes and praying that a certain woman and a certain child weren't spoken of. He noticed the look Jonathon was giving him out of the corner of his eye but he refused to help the older man.

"Um, I'm sorry. I guess I should've said one of the people," Jonathon said stiffly, looking back at the redhead. Leon knew Claire was staring at him but he didn't move or say anything.

"…Okay… I'm going to go find Angela," Claire said. "She's really wanted to speak with you, Leon. Can you guys watch Rani for me?" Leon nodded his head faintly and the 26 year old offered a mumbled thanks before walking off. Leon looked at Rani, who looked back at him.

_"Leon… Why did Claire leave me? Does she hate me that much?"_

_"She doesn't hate you sweetheart… I just think…she really wants to find her brother…"_

_"Please don't leave me… I..I don't like being alone."_

_"I'm not going anywhere, kiddo. I promise."_

"Your name's Rani? Come here and sit on the table with the cool guy," Jonathon said, saving the younger agent from speaking to the child. Jonathon was one of the few agents who knew about Sherry Birkin, the small child Leon had tried his best to protect. Tried and failed, like always.

Rani smiled happily and walked to Jonathon, who lifted her up and let her sit on the table next to where he stood. Leon started to turn back to face Rani, making sure she was okay, when a nimble hand snapped up and pulled the sunglasses from his face while another hand latched on his jacket and pulled him closer to the owner of the hands. A slender body pressed to his, smelling of slight perfume, and a voice purred next to his ear.

"I never liked seeing you in sunglasses," Ada said, still pulling him and moving him far enough away from Jonathon so that the man couldn't see them together. Or at least so the man couldn't see Ada as Leon stood in between them. "And I do expect you to at least try to dance with me."

"Can't dance," he mumbled back, a chill running down his spine as she leaned against him and her forehead rested on his right shoulder. He could feel her silk hair brush against his neck and her crimson dress swirled around their legs. The dress was similar to the one in Spain but instead of the butterflies, a gold dragon was running down the left.

"Then sway," she said. He sighed, wrapping his arms around her and letting his hands rest in the small of her back. Her hands rested on his shoulders. They moved silently, though he imagined Jonathon was watching them. Her raven hair smelled of some type of flowers and as it brushed against his neck and face, the agent felt himself struggling to keep in control.

"Okay… Can you see the little girl?" he asked, his words coming out stiff and almost forced. She lifted her forehead from his shoulder and he could only guess she was looking at Rani. She nodded in confirmation. "Keep an eye on her for me, would you?"

"Of course. It's the least I could do for you, since you were so gallant to dance with me," Ada purred, her right hand sliding down his chest. He swallowed thickly, praying it wasn't audible.

_Where did my sunglasses go…?_

"This is hardly dancing," Leon scoffed. He'd be a lying son of a bitch if he said he didn't absolutely love what was happening. Ada was pressed close enough to him that every time she took a breath, he could feel her chest moving in tune with the inhale. Her legs brushed his as they swayed/danced and she rested her chin on his shoulder. She was warm, the first woman he'd been this intimate with in a long time. Angela wasn't included, since that hadn't been truly intimate, though it had been interesting.

"Swaying, dancing, it's all the same. Don't argue semantics with me, handsome. After all, I always win," she teased. He could hear the laughter in her voice. God, that was something he'd missed. To his surprise, seven years ago Ada Wong had laughed at any of his weak attempts at jokes. He hadn't understood why a woman with her class would laugh at such feeble attempts but she had. And the way her voice sounded after she laughed, humor lacing over syllable of every word, had been intoxicating to the cop.

"I don't know if I can agree with you on that one," he replied, trying to keep stoic. He wanted to ignore their lives, ignore the fact that she was a wanted felon, and ignore everything. He just wanted to hold her and sway/dance, like the world and reality were nothing but dreams turned nightmares.

"On what? The swaying versus dancing or me, always winning?" she teased, her chin still on his shoulder. He gave her that much. She was watching Rani for him. And he appreciated that greatly. Leon knew that Claire would give him hell if he didn't, in some way, watch after the child.

"Both. I remember a few times in Raccoon City when I won the argument. And swaying is not dancing," Leon calmly replied. A smile found its way onto his lips when Ada laughed and buried her face into his shoulder. The stoicism was broken.

---

"Wow," Claire said as Angela walked towards her. The older woman was clad in a baby blue dress with thin straps that formed an X in the middle of her back. The dress reached the tops of her knees and showed off the woman's shapely form. "And I thought you liked purple."

"I do," Angela replied with a shrug.

"Bet Leon will love seeing you like this," Claire playfully chuckled. Angela's cheeks turned a deep crimson. "Oh, come on, as if there's any other reason for you to be here. Look, I know something happened between you two. I don't know what but…I think you both deserve to be happy."

"Playing matchmaker Claire? That's not like you," the other woman replied.

"It is when I want my friends to be happy. I had to play matchmaker for my brother and his girlfriend too," Claire laughed in response.

"I'm flattered," Angela said before her eyes scanned the crowd. "Okay… Where is he?"

Claire grinned and said, "Right this way, Madam Miller."

---

Leon knew something bad was going to happen. Ada Wong didn't show up for no reason. So, that's why when the woman in his arms flinched, he knew something bad was going to happen.

"Leon," she said softly, her lips close to his neck. "You're going to hate me." He wanted to laugh at that statement. For seven years he had tried to convince himself to hate the woman he was then holding. For seven years he'd failed miserably. He doubted he was going to hate her any time soon.

"And why's that?" he asked, silently noticing that her right hand, which had been resting on his left shoulder, was against his neck suddenly.

"Because I hate myself," she whispered and he felt a sharp, but small, pain in his neck. Like a needle prick, he noted.

The agent barely had time to say anything to the woman. The world around him grew blurry and objects started to double. Ada pulled away from him, her eyes filled with sorrow as Leon's legs gave out and he buckled, falling unconscious before his head hit the cold floor below.

---

The crowd broke into a panicked scream as three Secret Service agents fell unconscious for no obvious reason, their bodies crumpling lifelessly to the floor. President Graham was instantly shoved back, hidden behind the still conscious agents. Rani looked at Jonathon, who was searching for Leon amongst the crowd. When he found his friend, Jonathon cringed. Leon was unconscious, just like the other Secret Service agents.

"What's going on?" Claire asked, running up to the special agent. Jonathon shook his head, watching as his superior walked to Leon, crouched, and took his pulse.

"They're alive… Just unconscious," the Secret Service agent said steadily. His eyes met Jonathon's, who shrugged in confusion.

"Oh God, Leon…" a woman said. Jonathon glanced at a woman standing at Claire's side, her eyes wide with horror and sadness. And something else. Something Jonathon wasn't certain should be there.

---

The paramedic was sitting down in the driver's seat of the ambulance, when a gun pressed to the side of his skull. The woman stared forward, out of the truck as she said coldly said, "You're going to get out of the truck, walk away, and not look back."

The young man nodded his head vigorously, his hands shaking violently as he climbed out of the large vehicle. The woman lowered her gun and looked over, watching the paramedic as he walked steadily away. Other than his quaking hands, he looked like he was okay with what had just happened.

_Good boy._

The Eurasian woman climbed out of the ambulance, sliding her nine millimeter into her thigh holster and walked around to the back. She opened the huge doors, climbed in, and shut the doors behind her. Guilt immediately kicked in and she sat down, her knees tucked to her chest.

The vehicle was freezing, which was why she'd draped a blanket over the unconscious agent in front of her before the paramedic had returned to the truck. She didn't think he'd appreciate waking up cold.

To her surprise, he suddenly groaned and shook his head faintly, waking himself from the deepest sleep he'd had in seven years. Even when he'd fallen unconscious in Spain, he hadn't been in nearly as deep a sleep as the assassin had put him in.

"Ada…" he asked, blinking at the woman sitting at his side. She offered him a weak smile, though she was certain her eyes spoke of the guilt she felt. "Why… What happened?"

Here's where things got hard. She couldn't tell him the truth because then things would just get too difficult. So, she emptily replied, "I had to knock you unconscious. Simple as that. I don't know why though."

"Great, is this going to be a common thing?" Leon growled, lifting himself into a sitting position and holding the back of his head with his right hand. She remembered how hard he'd hit the ground and cringed faintly.

"No," she said softly. He looked at her, his glacier blue eyes losing their anger and gaining something else. She looked up into his eyes, holding them for the first time in a year. She'd missed looking into his eyes. Her lips parted faintly as she tried to think up something to say to stop anything from happening, when the doors to the ambulance opened and revealed President Graham himself.

"Mr. President," Leon said, sounding slightly shocked.

"It's 2006, Leon. So, Happy New Years. Now, I believe that both of you deserve to go home and get some rest," the President said pleasantly. Leon gave him a perplexed look, glancing at Ada, but she was already climbing out of the ambulance. She cast the blond agent a weak smile before walking into the darkness, her skin covered in goose-bumps immediately.

_Forgot my jacket._

The last thing Ada heard from the ambulance was a woman saying Leon's name. For the first time since Spain, the assassin didn't feel weak letting a tear slide down her face.

A/N: Hm, things are getting weird, yes? Also, I was wondering, do any of you, my awesome three reviewers, have anybody they want me to pair Claire up with? I'm just curious.


	4. Chapter 4

The Assassin's Bullet

A/N: Quick warning… If you don't like the idea of Leon kissing one woman and then making out with a different one within the time frame of oh…two or three hours, don't read this chapter.

---Washington D.C., January 1st---

"It's 2006, Leon. So, Happy New Years. Now, I believe that both of you deserve to go home and get some rest," the President said pleasantly. Leon gave him a perplexed look, confused that the most powerful man in the world had just acted like the assassin and the agent were two of his friends, and glanced over to Ada. But she was already exiting the vehicle, leaving Leon with a constricting feeling in his chest. She cast him a small smile before vanishing into the black abyss that surrounded the ambulance.

He wanted to climb out of the big vehicle and follow the Eurasian woman but he stayed back, noticing that his legs still felt vaguely distant from the rest of his body. The President walked silently away but somebody immediately took his place.

"Leon!" a familiar female voice said happily. He looked at the woman and he was slightly amazed. He was still a man, no matter how gentlemanly he was at times.

It was Angela, clad in a very revealing dress. Her blondish hair was loose and spilled over her shoulders and into her face. She looked a little more than happy to see the government agent awake and actually responsive.

_How long was I out? …I started dancing with Ada at what? Ten? Eleven?_

"You've been out for two hours, Leon," Angela said, moving so Leon could pull himself, somewhat clumsily, out of the ambulance. When he was out, his dress shoes on the frosted grass that surrounded the White House, he felt the world swirl violently. He moved his right hand and let it grip the bumper of the ambulance and he felt a warm hand grab onto his left bicep. "Are you okay? Dizzy?"

He nodded at the last one, finding himself unable to form a proper sentence. Angela gently pushed on his arm and forced him to sit in the ambulance, her dark blue eyes concerned as they scanned his face.

"I'm fine now… You said…I'd been out for two hours? It's no surprise I'm so tired… Dizzy, I mean," he mumbled, rubbing at his eyes. He heard her laugh faintly and he couldn't help but remember a different woman laughing earlier that night, her face buried in his shoulder.

_Stop it… That woman sedated you… Or worse… But… She looked so guilty… And the President. What the hell is going on?_

"True… I was so worried about you," Angela said, moving her hand from his bicep down to his forearm. "What happened?"

Now was where Leon chose to either tell Angela about the woman he'd told nobody about before or he chose to lie his ass off and say that he couldn't remember. As an agent, the choice was obviously the first one. That way, Angela would tell the government and Ada would be hunted down. But as the man, Leon didn't want Ada to get hurt. Even after all that had occurred between them, the idea of Ada Wong getting hurt, especially if it was because of him, made his chest constrict viciously.

"I can't remember," Leon finally said, letting his head drop. "Everything's kinda fuzzy… I remember Claire asking me to watch after Rani and then…nothing…"

"Weird…" she said softly, standing a bit closer to him then usual. He noticed that her hand was now clutching his, almost reminiscent of when they'd held hands in the Dome in Harvardville.

Swallowing, Leon asked, "Rani didn't see anything?"

Angela looked into his eyes and she shook her head. "Rani said that the only thing she saw was the crowd panic when you and the other agents fell," the woman replied.

He sighed and lifted himself from the ambulance, letting his legs adjust to supporting his weight before he actually stepped away from the vehicle. For some reason, the guilt in Ada's eyes haunted him. However, Angela's hand was still holding his and she stopped him with a simple tug. He turned to face her and she grabbed onto the lapels of his shirt and tugged. Their lips met and Ada faded from his mind.

---

"Claire Redfield?" a somber voice asked, stopping Claire as she returned to Rani. After what she'd just seen behind the ambulance, Claire was more than willing to leave Angela and Leon alone. Angela's sudden burst of courage made Claire proud in her friend.

"Um, yes?" Claire asked, turning to face the voice. A man, maybe a little younger than Leon but quite a bit shorter, stood near her. He had shaggy brown hair and dark eyes.

"I'm Detective Ark Thompson and I was hoping you'd be willing to answer some questions for me," he said, shoving his hands into his jacket's pockets. Unlike everybody else, Ark wasn't dressed in attire meant for the dance.

"Detective?" Claire asked incredulously. She knew not to trust anybody anymore.

"I guess that's the wrong way of putting it," Ark said with a drawn smile. "I'm a detective for a special branch of the United States government. You could always ask Leon about me. We're still somewhat friends."

"Um…Leon's kinda busy," Claire said with a humored smile. "I'll just have to trust you… But…you look really upset."

"It has to do with what I'm going to ask you, actually," Ark said simply. "And what do you mean, Leon's busy? Is he still unconscious?"

"Okay…" she said, her smile fading from her lips. "No, busy as in 'he and Angela Miller are making out behind the ambulance' busy."

Ark's eyebrows lifted up and he said, "And amazingly you said that with a straight face." She grinned and he motioned for her to join him by one of the frost covered limos that sat before the White House. "Okay," Ark said as soon as she leaned against a limo. "You saw Leon before he passed out, right?"

"Yeah but I left him with a little girl, Rani, so I could go find a friend. The woman he's making out with," she replied.

"You like saying that… Did you see…a woman in a red dress?" Ark asked. Claire frowned but thought back to the dance. Had she seen a woman in red?

"No, I don't think so… Why? Who is she?" Claire asked.

"Well, that's something I can't tell you. Confidential and all that bullshit. Let's just keep it at…we don't want that woman anywhere near Leon. Or any of us," he said stiffly, shaking his head.

"Us?"

"The survivors of Umbrella's experiments… I survived an island right after the Raccoon City incident but that's besides the point… Did Rani say she saw anything?" Ark asked, rubbing his hands together.

"No, she said she didn't see anything," Claire replied, still trying to register the fact that Ark was a survivor. "Sheena Island, right?"

He flinched and that was a good enough answer for Claire.

---Unknown, January 1st---

"I can't do this."

"It's the only way, Agent Wong."

"I can't… I can't hurt him like this anymore."

"I know how hard it is. Trust me… I saw the look on your face. It's the only way."

"…He hates me already. What's the point of making it worse?"

"Hates you? Are you kidding me? He still dreams about you."

"What?"

"His apartment is bugged, as you know. I've personally heard him say your name is his sleep. It seems that it's more like he still greatly cares for you. He doesn't hate you."

"I'm afraid of making him hate me…"

"It's the only way… It's either this, or they put a bullet-"

"Is his heart. Yes, I know. …Fine… Let me wait until tomorrow… I'll start taking them down then."

"Why tomorrow?"

"I want to have one more night thinking he doesn't hate every fiber of my being."

"Alright. You may have one more night."

---Washington D.C., January 1st---

The cold water on his hand made Leon cringe faintly. He turned the faucet in the shower towards the little fire symbol, hoping to get some hot water for once. Typically, the building ran out of hot water before he, with his odd schedule, could get any.

Clad in only a pair of loose jeans and his boots, Leon saw the haggard looking man in the mirror and sighed. His family would never let him live down the way he looked. Never smiling, never calm, never easygoing anymore. His life in the government had carved out his heart and replaced the once happy organ with a chunk of wood. Until Ada stepped back into his life, at least.

And with that thought, more problems arose. Ada and Angela. He'd never thought of himself as a man who could look at two women and feel great deals of affection for them both. The thing was, Ada, without her knowing, had held onto his heart for seven years without really trying. She'd stepped into his life in Raccoon City and although she'd 'died' that night, she'd never truly stepped out. Seeing her in pictures throughout the six years between Raccoon and Spain and then suddenly seeing her in Spain had been painful enough. Each time he'd gotten a glimpse of her in Spain, he'd wanted to grab hold of her and not let go.

However, Angela's kiss tonight had reminded him that he was rather lonely. By no means was Leon a sex hungry man but he was still a man. And Angela had more or less shoved her tongue into his mouth that night, reminding him that she was a woman. And a beautiful woman at that. Not to mention, they'd survived Harvardville together and he'd felt something familiar growing between them.

_Funny... Harvardville was basically a replica of Raccoon... Angela was like a weaker version of Ada. Isn't it funny...you fall for the woman you had to save... Looks more like you're trying to love a woman only because she's Ada, just weaker. _

The agent swallowed thickly as he lost himself in his thoughts. Was that true? Did he care for Angela only because she was Ada, just weaker? Then what did that mean about how he felt for Ada? Did he love her?

Something moved and he damn near grabbed his gun off the counter, near the sink, and aimed it at the intruder. But a flash of crimson told him to calm down and instead he turned to face her. His thoughts, luckily, vanished.

Ada was clad in black jeans and a blood red tank top that showed off her shoulders almost as well as her dresses did. She looked at him calmly, standing the way a person would if they were around an old friend, not somebody who could kill them. He frowned at her, almost shaking his head, as he asked, "You can't just knock, can you?"

A weary smile flickered across her lips as she said, "You're being watched. The forces in charge would know I'm here if I knocked."

"Watched? …My apartment's bugged?" he asked. Bitter emotions threatened but his body was still fighting off the fatigue caused by the sedative. Not to mention he was still trying to understand exactly what had happened when Angela had kissed him.

"Oops," Ada said, her eyes flickering past him and to the running shower. "You weren't supposed to know about that."

"My apartment's bugged… Shit… By the government?" he asked. She nodded, her eyes landing on him, and he just shook his head. Why did people find it necessary to invade his life?

That's when the agent noticed the woman was still looking at him, her green eyes dark with some unidentifiable emotion. She stepped closer to him and without really thinking, he stepped back.

"You're afraid of me," she said softly, taking another stepped towards him. He could feel the heat from the water on his back now and the heel of his boot clunked against the side of the lip that stopped water from spilling out of the shower and onto the floor.

"No, I'm not," he said stiffly. She reached out and lay a cool hand on his chest, her fingers merely inches away from the old bullet wound scar. He felt his heart speed up involuntarily.

"Then why did you back away from me?" she asked, her voice still soft and the odd emotion still in her eyes. He opened his mouth to say something but no words came out. Her hand, which was now as warm as his skin was, slid down his chest and down his stomach, stopping when her fingers touched the leather of his belt.

"I don't know," he finally said, trying to keep in control. It didn't help that he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her. It didn't help that the shower was still running loudly behind him, steam filling the room and making the mirror fog over.

She moved closer to him and without struggling, he was forced into the shower. The water struck his bare skin violently but he didn't care because as soon as his back hit the wall, her lips were on his. Her left hand grabbed a handful of his hair while her right clenched around his belt.

The agent instantly wrapped his arms around her, feeling her soaked shirt against his chest as their bodies pressed together. She released his belt and let her right hand mimic her left, gripping his hair and letting her fingernails scrap his scalp slightly. Her tongue traced over his bottom lip, making a chill run down his spine despite the heat of the water.

The doorbell rang suddenly, startling the couple out of the sudden frenzy, though Leon didn't break the kiss. If anything, he deepened it, opening his mouth as she did the same. His hands found her waist before ducking under her red tank top, causing her to gasp faintly and clench her fists, which, in turn, caused slight pain to the agent as his hair was pulled but that only seemed to increase things.

Somebody knocked on the door and a familiar voice reached his ears. Angela. But again, Leon couldn't bring himself to stop. Ada, however, released his hair and let her hands fall to his chest, where she gently pushed against his skin. They separated and while he saw the lust in her eyes burning strong, he knew she was right. They had to stop.

"This isn't right," she breathed, her chest heaving as she inhaled the steamy air. Leon stared at her but nodded, stepping past her. His pants and boots were ruined and sopping wet and worst of all, he wanted to turn around and continue what they'd been forced to stop. He really, really wanted to just pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless again. But he couldn't. And he wouldn't. No matter how much it hurt.


	5. Chapter 5

The Assassin's Bullet

---Washington D.C., January 1st---

Angela got an interesting sight. Leon opened the door, sopping wet. His shirt, pants, and boots all leaked water like he'd just jumped into a pool with his clothes on. But she had a funny feeling that he'd been taking a shower when she arrived. Of course, she didn't mind the sight, with the way his shirt stuck to his skin and showed off his muscles. That's when she noticed the rather distant look in his eyes.

_What's going on?_

"I thought _we _were supposed to go diving, not just you," she teased flirtatiously. Leon swallowed, visibly, and he just shrugged. The tease seemed to have made him suddenly uncomfortable, which she noticed.

"I didn't mean to get my clothes wet," he replied, his voice dead serious. She frowned and looked at his apartment behind him. His blank, empty apartment. She was startled by how empty it was but she decided to not ask. He hadn't exactly come off as the type of guy to keep knick knacks.

_Wow… I can't even say I know him that well… And…I asked him… Oh well, he agreed. That's all I care._

"Well, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to come with Claire and me to the Starbucks down the road later. We thought we should all get together and, you know…talk? You know Claire, trying to make us all best friends in the world and all that fun stuff," Angela said, fumbling with the hem of her blue tank top. The tank top showed off plenty of her skin and she'd worn it mainly because Leon seemed to like blue.

He still hadn't smiled though. In fact, a shadow of guilt seemed to fall over his face. But it was perhaps just that, a shadow and not guilt.

"Yeah, maybe," Leon offered.

_Maybe?_

"So, it's not definite then?" she asked, hoping, pleading, praying that he could come. He shook his head. "Government?" He nodded his head. She nodded in response, trying to make sure not to show the utter disappointment she was feeling. She started to back away before a thought struck her. "Hey, how do you feel?"

He frowned and cocked his head in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"You hit your head pretty hard. The paramedics said you might've gotten a concussion. How do you feel?" she continued. He shook his head silently before offering her a shrug. "You don't know?"

"Not… Um, I can't really explain it," he offered, gaining an oddly sheepish look to him. She frowned at him again. It seemed that the frown was going to be her only facial expression.

"Okay… Maybe you should get some sleep… I'll talk to… I'll hopefully talk to you later," Angela said before backing off. She watched Leon nod faintly before she walked away from him, her head filled with confused thoughts.

---

Ada would've been shivering had the bathroom not still been filled with steam from the shower. She sat against the counter, near Leon's gun, and felt her clothes trying to dry off. They failed at their attempt miserably. But she wasn't really thinking about her clothes at that moment. She could still feel, and taste, Leon's lips on hers. She closed her eyes, struggling to keep control of her emotions. The very things that had gotten her into the mess she was dealing with.

"Ada, I got rid of the bugs. You can come out," Leon said, sounding almost as if he was walking past the bathroom as he said it. She looked at the door, slightly confused. Who'd been at the door?

She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around herself like a shawl, before walking out of the bathroom into the cold apartment. Leon had a thing for keeping it cold. Maybe he didn't want to pay heating bills. Or he was weird. Ada was sticking with the first idea.

Standing silently, Ada let her eyes travel over the plain apartment. Nothing special stood out to her and she wondered if Leon kept it like that because he didn't often spend more than two or three months in one place. She looked over as Leon returned to the hallway, his pale eyes slightly shocked at her presence. She guessed he'd expected her to leave. But relief filled the shock.

"You can't exactly go outside dressed like that," Leon said finally. She smiled calmly, trying to steady her pained heart. He did expect her to go. He didn't realize that she hadn't been thinking about leaving yet.

"Dressed like what? You don't like my new fashion?" Ada purred, her grip on the towel tightening ever so slightly. Her heart thundered but the rest of her was steady, calm, the picturesque assassin.

To her surprise, Leon suddenly smiled as he said, "No, it just doesn't suit you. I'm sorry. I can't have people thinking I approve of that look."

Grinning, and truly glad that the old Leon was back, she merely replied, "Oh, then share your almighty fashion sense, Mr. Kennedy."

"Ha, my fashion sense in jeans and a T-shirt," he remarked. The assassin had an odd feeling in her chest, almost as if her heart was beating too fast. But the feeling wasn't unpleasant. It was, oddly, rather nice. "No fashion sense here."

"Then where do you get off trying to tell me that my new look isn't good enough?" she questioned, feigning offence. "What makes you almighty when it comes to clothes?"

"Because I can match my shirt to my eyes," he replied, a smile on his lips again. The very lips that she wanted to kiss again, over and over. But instead, Ada laughed, burying her face into the towel that remained bunched up around her throat. She had to keep her eyes off him or he might notice.

"That's a… How are you walking around in this frozen apartment in wet clothes?" she abruptly asked as she looked up again and realized he was still wearing wet clothes. He looked down at himself, slight shock on his face.

"I don't know, honestly. Guess it's just something the government taught me," he replied.

"I know that's not what the government taught you," she stated before realizing what she'd just said.

_Oh, great job! So intelligent…_

He frowned, a spark of confusion dancing in his pale eyes, before he asked, "What do you mean?"

"I'm just saying," she replied. Her mind went into overdrive, fabricating a lie as quickly as it could. "That I don't think the government would teach its agents how to walk around in the cold in wet clothes."

He was smarter than that and she knew it. But there wasn't anything he could do to make her speak. Well, there were things but she doubted he realized that he had such power over her. However, when he stepped closer to her, she began to doubt her assumptions. She swallowed and tried to ignore his presence in front of her.

"I'm not that stupid, Ada," Leon warned. She looked up at him, although he was only about two or three inches taller than her. And with a shrug, she tried to get past him, calmly shifting her weight slightly to the right and taking a step in that direction. But Leon was just as fast and he stayed directly in front of her.

"Move out of the way, Leon. I wouldn't want to hurt you," she said, shooting him a steady look. It was a look she hoped would make him back off but he didn't.

"I already told you you're not going outside with wet clothes. And…that's still my towel, fashion sense or not," he simply remarked. He looked steady, calm, and ready to stop her if she tried to make a break for it. And she knew that, if he really wanted to, he could stop her. He just didn't realize that. He didn't realize that he was almost as good as her. Sure, he didn't have the experience to stop her, or the speed, but he had her training and that was the important thing.

"Leon…" she started but he shook his head before she could even form a sentence.

"I don't care if you work for Wesker or whoever you really work for… You're still a human and you still can't go outside in the cold with wet clothes on. So, I'm not letting you leave, got that?"

She wanted to smile at his attitude. He was so sturdy, so different from the young man she met in Raccoon. She remembered that man as he'd changed, the way he could remain calm even when the zombies were reaching for his throat. Raccoon City had worked wonders on the brash cop. He'd changed. And she liked that. But she missed the younger Leon, the man she'd met those years ago. The man who wouldn't bring up her 'employer.' The man who would tease and laugh with her. The man who'd she'd been speaking to until her little slip.

Ada looked up into his eyes again but this time a familiar emotion ran through her. The very emotion that had run through her in the bathroom. She felt a smile tug at her lips but she highly doubted that Leon would like a repeat of the shower, even with how exhilarating it had been.

_He removed the bugs though. It's not like the government would know anything._

She didn't notice that Leon was taking a step back until her hand snapped out and grabbed hold of his shirt. The towel fell to the floor uselessly. Her sharp eyes, trained to pick out even the tiniest of things, had noticed something in the building next door, something she knew all too well.

_No, it's too early… They can't be here already…_

"Don't move," she hissed, her eyes snapping past him. He froze, his muscles tensing up. "Back in the bathroom," was her steady order. He gave her a confused look but stepped past her and into the steam filled bathroom. Ada ducked in after him and shut the door, letting her back face the agent.

"Please tell me there's a window in here or something. Some way we can get out," she hissed, glancing at him in the fogged over mirror. He shook his head and she cringed inwardly.

"Not really. The window's not big enough for either of us to get out. What's wrong?" he asked.

"I was wrong," she breathed, not caring if he knew and not caring if he noticed the sudden shake in her hands. "We were wrong."

---

Angela walked down the street, away from Leon's apartment. She'd lazily walked around the building, almost waiting for Leon to call to her and say that he would see her later, before she'd left the apartments, feeling a little out of place. Seemingly out of nowhere, men in black rushed past her and into the very building she'd just left. Angela snapped around, a look of horror gracing her face. Before the woman could react, the world exploded in a blast of noise and light.

---

"Ada?" Leon coughed, feeling his throat constrict painfully at the lack of clean air. The bathroom was filled with smoke and dust which instantly replaced the steam but the heat stayed, making things difficult. His hand brushed against cold metal and his fingers wrapped around the barrel of his USP. He shoved the gun between his belt and his jeans.

When the assassin didn't respond, Leon found himself searching the dark bathroom over, his eyes finding it difficult to focus. But a dark shape near the back of the bathroom caught his attention.

"Here," was her weak reply. She was lifting herself up from the shower, her shirt darker than it should've been. A hiss of pain escaped her and she collapsed to her knees, her hand pressing to her left side. The lip of the shower was painted crimson. Leon was at her side in moments.

"How bad is it?" he asked, not daring to reach out and touch her. As badly as he wanted to, he knew that Ada's pride would stop her from accepting his help. He felt his fists clench furiously.

"Not that bad…. We need to get out of here," she said. She tried to stand but her legs gave out and a yelp of pain escaped her. Leon moved to touch her but she lifted her left arm and pushed his hand away. "Get out of here," she ordered, her green eyes staring into his blue ones. "Go."

"No," he said emptily, letting the agent in him act instead. Ada's eyes filled with, shockingly, fury and she planted her left hand to his chest. Before she could say anything though, loud thuds hit the door, startling them. Leon looked back at the door and Ada's hand fell from his chest.

The bathroom door was handing on by two of its hinges. It would hardly give them five minutes of safety from whoever was trying to get in.

"I'll only slow you down with these injuries," she said softly, the fury fading from her eyes. He looked at her, almost imagining that they were in a turn table and not a bathroom. Imagining that it was her right side pouring out blood and not her left. Imagining that she was wearing a crimson dress over black tights instead of her black jeans and red shirt.

"Don't," he snarled, gaining some anger of his own. His fists clenched and unclenched and he tried to force himself to not see Raccoon City in his bathroom. The thuds seemed to vanish and Ada's sorrowful eyes met his. She hadn't realized what she'd said.

"Leon, I'm-" she started. But he stood, cutting her off.

"If you're not going to let me help you, then I'll just have to kill whoever's trying to kill us," he said. He pulled the USP out and, looking more confident than he felt, he took a tentative step towards the door.

---

Angela sprinted up the steps of the apartment building, her boots slapping against he cement. Small fires snapped and crackled in the hall as she ran but she found herself staring in horror at the door that led into Leon's apartment. It was hanging askew and splintered terribly. It looked as if something had decided to rip it open but she could see by the singed wood that it was actually the explosion that had occurred.

The explosion had sounded, and seemed, worse than it really was. In all reality it wasn't bad enough to take out the entire floor of the building. Rather, it had started fires because of flaming wood from Leon's door being tossed around into the hallway.

"Leon?" she asked, her voice hardly a shout. She looked into the room and, to her amazement, several men in black uniforms and what appeared to be gas masks disappeared out of the open window. She heard the distant squeal of sirens and a sigh of relief escaped her. Until she realized Leon hadn't responded.

---

She felt Leon wrap his arms around her and she pressed herself into his warm form, even though she knew that something bad would be happening soon. Ada could hear the cry of sirens, possibly firemen and police.

"Hold on," he breathed gently. She shook her head weakly and pushed away from him.

"They… They can't… I can't go to the hospital," she replied weakly, looking up at his face. He shook his head in confusion. "And it's not because I'm stubborn… Look… I'll be fine… Just get down there and I'll… Be fine."

"Bullshit you will Ada. I'm not just going to-"

"Leon?!" a voice cried. She looked up at him. It was the woman from earlier, she guessed. With a weak smile, Ada leaned closer to Leon and planted a light kiss on his lips.

"I'll be fine, handsome," she promised, forcing herself to stand. "But I can't be seen by them. I'll be fine." He stood as well but nodded. She was glad that he didn't argue with her more. "I'll… I'll send you an email, okay?" she asked.

And before he could ask her how she had his email address, she pushed past him and out of the bathroom. The woman, standing by the door that led into the apartment, couldn't see Ada as the Eurasian beauty ducked through the smoke and out of the open window, where the smoke flowed out freely, offering her a safe escape.

_I'm sorry, Leon… But the boss wouldn't appreciate me getting caught before I was supposed to be._

---

Angela ran over to Leon, who was being examined by a paramedic. In another situation, the agent would've laughed at the fact that the paramedic was the very one who'd treated him after he'd fallen unconscious.

"Oh my God, are you okay?" Angela asked, stopping in front of Leon. "They wouldn't let me come with you. I'm sorry…"

"I'm fine," he assured. "A little smoke inhalation but otherwise I'm fine." She smiled and as the paramedic left to leave the two of them alone, she moved forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. Leon awkwardly returned the hug but he still felt Ada's lips on his and he still felt her fingers in his hair.

"I'm just glad you're okay," Angela said, pulling away and smiling at him. Leon smiled too but had either of them really thought about it, both of them would know his smile was very forced.

---Unknown, January 1st---

"You were very lucky, Agent," the man said steadily.

_Oh yes, that's why I had to watch some…woman clinging onto him like he was her toy, right? Lucky me. I should've known… I should've known he'd move on… He has every right too… Then why do I still feel like he's mine?_

"Sure I am. If you don't count that I know have matching scars because I hit the side of a shower. You know, at least the other scar has a good story to go with it," she sarcastically replied.

_Because I still love him… That's obvious. I don't even think time will annihilate how I feel for him. _

"Yes, well, that was unfortunate. But being at his apartment. Well, that wasn't expected," her boss simply replied.

_But does he feel the same for me?_

"I told you I wanted one more night to think he doesn't hate me," she snapped, losing her cool for a moment. Too many emotions ran through her at the moment.

_Why would he? But… He didn't pull away when I kissed him. He kissed back in the shower… The shower… That was…_

"And what exactly did you expect to happen, Agent? If you sleep with him, do you honestly think any of this will work out?" the man questioned.

_I'll just have to wait… Please...handsome, don't love me… That will only make things that much harder._

"I wasn't going to. Don't give me any ideas," she warned before shutting her PDA off. With a sigh, she looked out over the city.

_And things don't need to get any harder than they already are._

A/N: I hope this chapter wasn't too confusing. Look at all the Resident Evil 2 references! (Though, isn't that what Degeneration really is? Just a big reference to Resident Evil 2? Except… Ada's better than Angela. And Sherry's better than Rani… And all those kinds of things.)


	6. Chapter 6

The Assassin's Bullet

---Unknown, January 3rd---

Many of her nights were spent in nightmares, terrible nightmares that included when she threw himthe rocket launcher in Raccoon City and in Spain. They included when she shot the knife from Jack Krauser's hand and when she placed two bullets in Bitores Mendez. They included when she rang the bell. But most of all, they included when she'd sacrificed herself for him.

The nightmares that included her sacrifice always went the same way and they occurred more often than any of the others. She guessed it had to do with guilt or the physical and mental pain she'd felt when it had truly occurred.

She would be there. She would watch. She wouldn't be able to move until the job was done and she didn't have any of her weapons. Her nine millimeter would be missing and the slender knife she kept on her was gone as well.

She'd have to watch as the young, gore covered cop was backed into a corner, his eyes wide but accepting. After all, he'd cheated death all night. He was accepting his fate. But she wasn't.

The creature would reach down and grab a hold of his throat and the cop's instincts would kick in. He'd vainly try to struggle, his jaw clenched in pain, his legs flailing as the creature lifted him nearly three feet from the catwalk, and his hands clutching uselessly at the creature's wrist.

By this time, she would be fighting some invisible force that was holding her in place, forcing her to watch the young man have his life slowly squeezed out of him. She'd scream his name in an attempt to make him stay conscience but her voice didn't come out. She couldn't make a noise, she couldn't move, and she was being forced to watch him die.

It would only take a few seconds, which seemed like an eternity in the dream world, for the cop to stop struggling. The lack of oxygen forced the fight from his body and only his hands remained, clutching desperately at the monster's wrist. She'd know what was going to happen and somehow would manage to turn away. But that wouldn't keep the sound out.

The loud snapping noise, almost like when somebody stepped on a thin twig, would hit her ears and she would fall to her knees, feeling pointless, and scream.

Then, she'd wake up. That would be followed by her falling from her bed and sort of stumbling her way to the bathroom, where she'd lean her head against the cold toilet, bile threatening in her throat. That noise was all too real and seemed to remain in her head no matter what she did.

And she'd done a lot. She'd tried blaring music in her apartment or put it on the news to listen to the stupidity of the common people. Once she'd even curled up on the couch, feeling like she was falling into a deep pool of insanity. Which, really, wasn't that unlikely. But nothing ever worked.

However, sometimes she was…lucky, to say the least. Sometimes she would have dreams, instead of nightmares. She wouldn't have to watch him die or have him tell her off like he had a couple times in her nightmares. Instead, she'd find herself in a perfect life. A small house, picket fence, cute fuzzy animals. All the stuff she'd never believed she could ever have. All the stuff she knew she could never have.

---Washington D.C., January 3rd---

"Okay, this is just something to get us all to relax about what we went through. Me and Rebecca Chambers set one of these up back when the S.T.A.R.S. were still active," Claire explained to the three other people. Leon, Angela, and Ark formed a semicircle around Claire, none of them looking very pleasant about the matter.

"You're kidding, right? A therapy group?" Angela asked.

"It's just something to get a secret off your chest. Like, how you felt when the zombies attacked or maybe you just want to talk about somebody who died," Claire continued. Leon, who sat directly across from Claire but was also separate from the group, folded his arms over his chest and shook his head silently.

_Oh yes, we're all going to come clean but our horrific incidents and be best friends and hold hands and go on double dates. Fun!_

Leon found himself only half listening to what Claire was saying. Instead, he thought back to his apartment. With Ada. The bathroom had been incinerated before anybody could get in there; meaning Ada's blood on the shower hadn't been found. He remembered the way she'd felt against him when they were in the shower, her fingers in his hair and her lips on his. But before he could fall too deep into the memory, Ark shook his shoulder.

"You were kinda spacing out there," the other man said. Leon cast him a silent look before he shrugged and looked back at his boots on the floor.

_Fun…_

---Unknown, January 3rd---

They were lying on the couch, watching the news with less than enthusiastic attitudes. He even asked why they were watching the news but she'd never given him a response. Instead, she'd continued to savor the warmth of his body against hers. His arms were wrapped lazily around her waist and she could feel his breath on her shoulder.

"More outbreaks around the world are being stopped thanks to the quick actions of WilPharma, who are now owned by Tricell," the female reporter stated solemnly. She shook her head silently. Tricell would be the end of the world if they continued towards being like Umbrella Corp.

"You think something bad is going to happen?" a male voice asked, reminding her that he was awake and watching the news with her. She turned to face her companion, a smile on her lips.

"Not really. But I've taken a more optimistic view on life thanks to you," she purred. He raised an eyebrow and her smile widened into a grin. She knew what was coming. The playful banter they had was something she knew to expect every time she said something controversial.

"You used to give me hell about being optimistic," he laughed, leaning over and kissing her. She continued to grin and returned the kiss lovingly.

"Well, I'm not anymore," she promised as they pulled apart. "Now, it's a good thing."

"So, it's a good thing if you're optimistic but annoying if I'm optimistic? That sucks," he mumbled. She pressed even closer to him, inhaling the scent from his shirt. A scent that only he had. It was something she'd never been able to explain. It was just a great smell.

A shrill beeping pierced the once pleasant world and she bolted upright in her bed with a start, her heart pounding and her head throbbing. She looked over at her PDA that sat on her bedside table and scowled bitterly.

She grabbed the small device and checked the message as her brain tried to separate her dream from reality. She imagined she could still smell the warm scent of the man she'd been laying against and they were still doing something as normal as watching the news.

She looked at the screen of the PDA, which was much too bright for her newly awakened eyes. But the message was important since it had been sent so early. The message read: Get up early. Mission starts in two hours.

---Washington D.C., January 3rd---

"…I mean… Greg was like my brother you know? And after Kurtis had basically abandoned me, I was really clingy when it came to Greg… He was a great guy," Angela said. Claire, who'd gone first and spoken of some kid named Steve, sadly nodded.

"It always hurts… Leon?" Claire asked. Leon felt like comparing her to a psychiatrist.

"Pass," he mumbled in response. Ark smirked at him but Claire looked less than pleased. Leon noticed that when Ark noticed Claire's reaction, his face darkened too. Leon wanted to slap the other man.

"There is no pass, Leon," Claire said. "Come on. Just tell us how you felt."

Running on an hour of sleep, Leon's anger was the first emotion he felt and he snapped, "Maybe I'll just tell them about how you abandoned me with a petrified little girl who viewed you like you were a hero. Maybe I'll tell them how you treated me like shit because I was a cop and your brother got insulted by cops. Because, God forbid, you listen to me when I said I was a rookie and had nothing to do with what happened to Chris." The agent stood, his fists clenched, and he stated, "This is absolutely ridiculous. Next time, I'd appreciate it if you just left me out of your little hold hands session, alright?"

---Unknown, January 3rd---

"So, you're telling me that I need to pick them off in front of him? I never agreed to this!"

"Don't tell me you're getting squeamish. How many times have you murdered in cold blood? I remember your background. I remember Amy. Just…take them out. It's as simple as that."

"To you it is. You're safe in your nice, big house."

"Just do the mission. You agreed to this. Would you rather he gets killed, Agent? Because as much as I like him, he's still expendable."

"No. He's not."

---Washington D.C., January 3rd---

"Leon!" Angela called, catching up with the agent as he walked away from the hotel and towards his car. "Please, stop. Talk to me."

"About what?" he snapped, turning to face her. "What do you want me to talk about? Do you want me to tell you all the horrors I encountered? A lot, okay? I keep those things to myself. And I always will. Nothing you, Claire, or anybody says can stop me."

Angela opened her mouth to speak when a thundering crack tore through the air, making people scream as they realized the sound was a gun going off. Leon and Angela instantly ducked but he saw the target. A woman, maybe three meters away from Angela, lay on the cement, her skull oozing blood slowly. He stood and, cautiously, walked over to her.

"Shit, is she dead?" somebody stammered out.

"Everybody back off. Police," Angela ordered, holding up her S.R.T. badge. Leon crouched next to the corpse and noticed the hole, about the size of a penny, in her right temple. A clean shot. A perfect shot. He glanced around at the buildings, cringing at all the windows. An assassin could be in any of those buildings.

_But why this woman?_

"Does anybody know her?" somebody stammered. Angela crouched next to Leon, her dark blue eyes scanning the corpse.

"She's one of the Harvardville survivors," the S.R.T. member whispered sharply. Leon stood and looked at the most likely buildings, the ones across the street. They would give the best vantage point to an assassin.

_There…_

A glint of metal, fast enough to prove to him it was somebody pulling away from the window. He swallowed and started for the building.

---Unknown, January 3rd---

She trotted out of the building, the rifle gone, and cringed. Other than the fact that her pride had been hurt, since she'd had to let the blond agent see her, her side burned with pain. Her side, which was still raw, gave her problems when she did too much physical exercise.

_And now starts the ultimate game of cat and mouse. Good luck, handsome._

---Washington D.C., January 3rd---

Leon's fist remained clenched as he explained what had happened to the President, the small object biting into the palm of his hand. He was technically hiding evidence but he didn't care.

"Well, I want you on the case, Agent Kennedy," the President suddenly said. Leon frowned, looking at the older man in confusion.

"Me? Why?"

"You can handle an assassin like this one I think. If they were stupid enough to let you see their rifle, then no agent should have any problem handling it. And I recommend, as a person, that you keep all Harvardville survivors close. You don't want to take the chance that they'll get shot, right?" President Graham explained.

Leon bowed his head in respect, thinking about what had happened that night. With a nod, Leon accepted the mission and backed out of the Oval Office. As he walked through the hall, he looked down at the object in his fist. He hadn't realized he'd been clenching his fist tight enough that the object had punctured the flesh of his palm. The small thing was covered in bright crimson blood.

The small object was a crimson butterfly that was lined in gold and was about half the size of his palm. And on the back was a tiny engraved message that he would've missed had he not examined it closely. It read: Cat or mouse handsome, which are you going to be?

A/N: And so the story actually starts. The following chapters will contain more action, gore, and violence so you've all been warned.


	7. Chapter 7

The Assassin's Bullet

---Washington D.C., January 4th---

"So, you're telling me that somebody sent out an assassin to pick off the Harvardville survivors?" Ark asked, pacing the room over. His hands were shoved deep into his large jacket and his eyes were haunted with worry.

"You're not supposed to get close to people, Thompson," Hunnigan reminded as she walked over to Leon, a folder in her left hand. "I'll be returning to HQ as soon as they get here. Leon… It's probably a high class assassin. Most like the rush of having somebody hunting them. Be careful."

_Not this one… What're you doing Ada? _

He nodded and Hunnigan started back for the exit of Ark's apartment. She was going to watch Claire, Angela, and Rani arrive and then she would return to headquarters to act as Leon's contact, like always. However, one of the unnecessary problems was Ark and the fact that he'd taken a liking to Claire Redfield.

"So, something's going on, I gather," Angela said, walking into the room. Ark stopped pacing and watched as Claire walked into the room. Leon shook his head at the man and walked over to the table that was covered in reports and other confidential things. The windows were covered completely and the only light that was in the room was a dull, yellow light that hung from the ceiling.

"You could say that," Ark replied, walking over to Leon. The two agents stared at the reports as the women joined them.

"I don't think-" Claire started, motioning towards Rani.

"No, she needs to be here too," the dark haired man replied, shaking his head at Claire. She frowned at him bitterly and he just looked back. "She needs to know who to look out for, Claire."

"I don't-"

"She's the most dangerous assassin in America, possibly the world. She's taken out senators and world leaders without so much as a challenge. People catch few pictures of her and if they do, they're hardly what one could consider a good enough picture to analyze," Leon said, interrupting the others. "She typically carries a sniper rifle and a pistol but lately she's been seen with knives and other weaponry."

"What's her name?" Angela finally asked. "Or…what she even looks like?"

"Nobody knows what she looks like," Ark stated, shaking his head sadly. Leon kept his mouth shut, the agent in him wanting to blurt out Ada's exact description. But he wouldn't. "Except… She likes red."

"Red? You were…" Claire mumbled, her sentence fading off. "But with the way you made it sound, she seemed to be a lot more deadly then she's proving to be. I mean, Leon and Angela saw her gun. That's not a very good assassin."

"Maybe she's slipping," Ark offered in response. "I don't know."

"If she is, thank God. It'll make killing her that much easier," Angela said. Rani looked up at the woman in horror.

"You can't kill her!" the eight year old cried crossly.

"What? Rani-" Claire started but the little girl started shaking her head angrily.

"No, you can't! I won't let you!"

"Rani, you don't even know this woman," Angela tried.

"I don't care! You can't-"

"None of us will be able to kill her. If she wants, she'll take us all down in a matter of seconds without hesitation and she would make such a clean getaway that nobody would realize she was ever there. She's too good, too fast, too smart," Leon finally said. But it wasn't because he wanted to calm Rani. In some way, Leon was trying to defend Ada Wong's honor.

"What?" Ark asked, turning to face Leon. The other agent, being a detective, knew that Leon shouldn't have had that information on the assassin. But before the older man could respond, a series of screams came from outside of Ark's apartment. The four adults started for the exit immediately.

---

Angela hesitated as soon as they reached the base of the stairs. A dead man lay there, foam and bile spilling from his mouth. The people surrounding him stared at him in pure horror and a woman was trying to get to his side. Angela motioned for Ark to join the woman before she walked to the man and knelt next to him.

Carefully, Angela pressed her index and middle finger to his throat, hoping that she would find a pulse. But nothing was there, just cold and sweaty skin. She pulled her fingers away and lowered her head, listening to the sobs of the woman as they increased in pitch and speed.

"Poison?" Claire asked from behind Angela.

"I've never seen poison like this," Angela whispered, still looking at the corpse.

"It's here, isn't it?" the redhead asked, probably looking at Leon. Angela frowned when Leon didn't respond to Claire and she turned to look at him, confused.

"Leon?" the S.R.T. member asked softly. Leon wasn't there. "Where'd he go?"

"I don't know. He was here a few moments ago," Claire replied, her eyes wide. "Oh shit… Rani!"

---

"Your dress is really pretty," Leon heard Rani state as he silently walked towards the apartment.

"Thank you," a familiar voice replied, making Leon's fists clench. He stepped into the apartment, where he saw Ada kneeling in front of Rani, and the assassin looked up at him with calculating green eyes. Rani looked back at Leon and he noticed that the young girl seemed completely at ease with Ada. Almost like they were old friends.

"What're you doing?" Leon finally asked, though he wasn't certain who was he speaking to.

"Me? Well, I'm speaking to Rani here. She has an interesting story, don't you think?" Ada asked, standing. She rested her hand on the child's head and looked past him towards the door. Leon turned and shut the door, locking it as well. "That's more like it. You must've read the butterfly, Leon," she said, walking over to him. Rani looked between the two adults.

"I did. But…"

"You don't like being confused," she said. "Like me."

"Then explain," Leon said. "And Rani…"

"She's my friend!" Rani said to Leon. The agent looked at Ada, who smiled faintly. "You can't hurt her!"

"I'm not going to," Leon replied.

"If I thought he was, Rani, I wouldn't be standing next to him," the assassin said to the girl. Rani looked at her, some unknown emotion running through her dark eyes. Ada turned back to Leon, her green eyes locking onto his blue ones. "I won't go after your friends. Not yet. But eventually… I'll have to."

Claire and Angela's voices suddenly came through the door, asking if Leon was in there and if Rani was okay. Fists met wood and Ada looked past him again. Her eyes narrowed dangerously and Leon stepped forward, grabbing her arm and forcing her to stay.

"I can't tell you anything, Leon. You and I both know that. Now, let me go. Unless you'd like to end this. Right now," she said, suddenly pressing something cold and metallic into the hand that wasn't holding her arm. He stared at her and took his hand away from the gun, shaking his head. "Right…" she said softly, her eyes suddenly gaining a new emotion. One he didn't like.

He released her and she backed away. With one final glance to Rani and then Leon, Ada exited the apartment via the window.

---

Ark smashed into the door with his shoulder and aimed his Beretta 92 into the room, his eyes scanning over the mostly barren apartment. Leon stood next to Rani, holding the child's hand and looking at them quietly.

"What the hell's going on?" Claire snapped, storming into the room. Leon watched her quietly and Ark placed his gun back into its holster in his jacket. "Why was the door locked?"

"There was a woman in here. Leon came in and she ran off," Rani said, looking at the redhead.

"The door was locked?" Leon asked, his blue eyes wide with shock. Ark frowned, noticing that the 'shock' wasn't very real. "Weird…"

"You didn't hear us?" Angela asked, walking over to him. Ark noticed the way the woman looked at him with pure concern in her eyes. "That might be-"

"I was honestly more concerned with Rani," the blond replied, shaking his head. He seemed, however, extremely uncomfortable. Almost like something _was _wrong but not with his health. "I'm fine. If something was wrong with me, you would've found out by now."

_You're hiding something Leon… What're you hiding?_

A/N: I just wanted to get this chapter up real fast, even though it's not the best…


	8. Chapter 8

The Assassin's Bullet

---Washington D.C., January 10th---

_Her hand was clammy and cold, almost sliding out of his grasp several times. She was as close to his side as she could possibly get, their bodies pressed together as they walked. Many people commented on how shy and frightened the young girl looked as they walked but the ex-cop paid them no attention._

_They'd been walking in silence for over an hour, trying to kill time as they waited for the airport to tell them that her plane was boarding. The walking had been the child's idea and he'd not had the heart to tell her that he was still in some pain._

_"She's never going to come back, is she?" Sherry suddenly asked, breaking the silence. Leon looked down at the small girl with the clammy and cold hands. _

_Struggling to keep the fury that was building out of his voice, the young man softly replied, "I don't know sweetie." Sherry, however, was too intelligent for his blunt lie. She looked up at him, blue eyes sorrowful. They'd relied on each other for the last month, holding onto each other as the only thing they had left in the world. He couldn't lie to her, even if it was for the better. "No… She's not…"_

_"I didn't think so…" the child replied, looking away from him. "Why would she? She's got better things to do than watch after some kid." Leon stopped, forcing the girl to stop too. He released her hand and knelt down as the girl turned to face him. Their eyes met and he shook his head at her._

_"Sherry, don't think like that. I'm not going to try and justify what Claire did to you…to us. But you're not just some kid. Most kids couldn't handle the hell you just survived. They couldn't handle losing their family. And they sure as hell couldn't handle dealing with some rookie cop after their friend decided to abandon them. But you did. You're not just some kid, sweetie," he said, holding her eyes for the first time since their escape from the accursed city._

_Sherry's eyes filled with tears and she threw herself into Leon's arms, accidentally hitting his shoulder as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He inwardly cringed but wrapped his arms around Sherry, holding the young girl protectively. People looked at the scene curiously but those who had heard Leon's rant had given him looks of understanding. _

_The girl pulled away and mumbled, "Sorry I hit your shoulder." He shrugged, causing a splinter of pain to rush through his left shoulder, chest, and left arm. She looked down, rubbing at her eyes with a balled up fist. When she finally looked at him again, the redness in her eyes was gone and her face was returning to its typical pale color without the blotches of red caused by her crying. "Who was she?"_

_The question caught the man off guard and he cocked his head. "Who?" he asked. Sherry looked down, suddenly looking shy._

_"You talk in your sleep sometimes… You said a name… Ada. Who was she?" Sherry explained, looking at him from behind her golden blonde hair._

_He lowered his gaze to the floor but found himself unable to fabricate a lie to the small girl. "A woman…that I fell in love with in Raccoon…"_

_The child gave him a sad look and she asked, "She died…didn't she?" He nodded. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't have asked."_

_"It's okay… It's not your fault… I shouldn't talk in my sleep," he mumbled in response. Sherry offered him a feeble smile but the attempt was at least something. _

_A mechanical voice filled the terminal, reminding the duo where they were. Sherry looked at Leo silently, who stood and extended his hand to her. She took it and they walked off to the plane she would be taking._

"Leon," a voice said, something shaking his shoulder vigorously. The blond agent lifted himself from his desk, where he'd fallen asleep without meaning to. He looked at the person who'd interrupted his sleep; Ark.

"What?" he asked coldly, staring at the younger man with angry eyes. Ark held his gaze, however, and that worried Leon.

"You should come take a look at this."

---

"The CDC believe that the outbreak is in fact the cause of the deadly virus that recently seemed to be plaguing the Harvardville area. However, the President has already explained that he will be handling the situation immediately and that people in San Francisco are to stay indoors until further notice. This is Amy Reynolds, reporting on the outbreak in San Francisco."

The news switched to sports suddenly but Claire found herself to confused and terrified to bother with changing the channel. Although the T-Virus had found its way through America, the outbreaks occurred in small, secluded cities or towns. Until now, apparently.

"You've got to be kidding me," Angela whispered from Claire's left. The older woman looked at the screen with a combination of hatred and horror. Her eyes were narrowed and her fists were clenched. Claire was reminded of the woman's fury in Harvardville, after they'd escaped the airport.

"Harvardville was small and look at what happened. San Francisco's huge," Ark said softly, shaking his head. "What do-"

"Breaking news! Another outbreak has been reported in Phoenix, Arizona and another in Dallas, Texas. Other such outbreaks have started to occur in other areas of the southwestern area. The CDC said they are officially quarantining the area and the President is entering a conference soon to discuss the matter at hand. Again, outbreaks have occurred in Phoenix and Dallas," the newswoman said, her eyes wide with terror.

"Fuck me," Claire whispered.

---Unknown, January 10th---

"You never said this would happen," she hissed furiously into her PDA, staring at the news. The screen was showing Phoenix, covered in zombies. Every now and then the screen would black out as a zombie murdered somebody, tearing flesh from their bones in the typical gruesome fashion.

"I never expected it to. You think I want this to happen? I love my country, thank you very much. It must be-"

"It's not. Grande doesn't have the courage to attack cities like San Francisco or Phoenix. And he's blunt. If he was going to attack a city, he'd make it New York City or L.A.," she disagreed, shaking her head. Her raven hair fell into her face and she reached up to brush it away.

"Then who is it? Wesker wouldn't do this out of fear I'd give Redfield the go ahead with the termination idea. Tricell has no reason to attack America. Terra-Save is all for saving. Who's attacking us?"

"Where's Downing?" she asked suddenly, remembering the incident in the airport.

"In jail. Why? He wouldn't do this again," the man on the other end said, his voice shaking.

"True but remember the terrorists? They had bombs planted, ready to fill cities with the virus. If those bombs finally went off…and the virus is being released… I don't think you're going to be able to save your country, Mr. President," the woman finally said.

A silence met her ears though she could vaguely hear the man whispered disagreements to himself. Finally, he asked, "What does Downing have to do with this?"

"The switch to blow the virus into the air. Where is it?"

---Washington D.C., January 10th---

"Downing?" Leon asked.

"Downing. The President thinks he might have something to do with the outbreaks in Arizona, California, and Texas," Hunnigan replied. She looked at him, concern in her brown eyes. "Leon…if the virus makes it to the east coast… I'm sorry for the way I've treated you. You're a good man."

"You act like this is the end of the world," Leon said, shaking his head.

"It might be. If Downing is doing this…we can't do anything to him. Not yet. He was found guilty but… He's being protected," Hunnigan said, taking her glasses off and rubbing her eyes. Leon knew she was worried for her family, who lived in California.

"Who's protecting him?" the blond man asked.

"You'll never believe me if I tell you," the agent laughed, her voice filled with bitter anger.

"Try me."

"…William Birkin."

---

When Leon walked back into the lobby of the hotel, he looked rather lost. That was the only way Angela could think to describe the way he looked. His blue eyes were focused on the floor and he seemed to be walking without really thinking.

"Leon?" Claire asked. He looked up. "You okay?"

"I have to go talk to Frederic Downing. The government wants me to question him. I'll be back in about an hour or two," he said, sounding like he was reading from a script. Angela walked over to him.

"Are you sure you're okay? I can go with you," she whispered, trying to avoid having Ark or Claire overhear them.

"Stay here," he ordered faintly before walking off.

---

The massive prison was rather nice looking if one ignored the angry shouts of inmates. Leon walked with the guards to Downing's cell, his USP missing and his knife hidden so well that only the metal detectors would've detected it, had the President not told the guards to let him through with the weapon.

"It's rare that people like Downing come to this prison," the guard to Leon's left pointed out, his voice a deep baritone that reminded Leon of Miller's voice when he'd tried to get Angela to run. "Usually, they go to Gitmo or somewhere that deals with terrorists."

"We can't really decide if he's a terrorist or not," Leon admitted. "Even though he fits the description perfectly."

They approached Downing's cell and Leon saw the silver haired man sitting on his bed, reading a small book. He lifted his head, pale eyes widening at the sight of the agent. "I've got a visitor? Why is he here? Wouldn't I have to speak to him on the phone?" the man asked, his accented voice humored.

The guard to Leon's right snorted and unlocked the cell, opening it and ushering Leon inside. The agent stepped in and stood before the British man, listening to the guards shut the steel door behind him. Downing apparently realized that Leon wasn't there to play because he stood, dropping the book, and stared at the tall agent in confusion.

"How is William Birkin protecting you from getting put in Guantanamo Bay? Or even better, how is he protecting you from being put to death?" Leon asked, fury rising in his chest like a flame hungry for oxygen.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Downing said, raising his hands in defense. Like that would stop the agent from throttling him.

"I'm not here to play games. Answer my question and I'll leave you alone. Don't and I'll break every bone in your body until you do answer," Leon snarled furiously.

Downing opened his mouth to speak when Leon actually _heard _something whiz past his ear and strike the silver haired man in the throat. He heard the guards curse and struggle to open the door. Downing collapsed, landing on his knees with a loud crack and his hands flew to his throat, where blood gushed out of the small hole like a geyser. Leon bolted forward, kneeling before the man and pressing his hand to Downing's throat as well. The blood oozed over his hand but the guards were at his side in an instant, taking over for the agent.

Leon backed off and turned, looking out of the cell and across the way to see a woman. He shook his head at her, fury lacing his very being but fading away as the woman walked off.

---

"You have kids?" Claire asked, looking through the pictures in Ark's wallet. He looked back at her, slightly confused and she lifted a picture, which portrayed a young girl and a teenaged boy.

"Oh! Kinda. I adopted them. I found them on Sheena Island and we escaped together. I think you would like them," Ark said, smiling at her warmly.

The door to the hotel room that Leon was using as his new home, until the government could relocate him, opened and Leon stepped in. Angela made a sharp gasping noise and Ark saw why. Leon's hands were covered in blood.

"Downing's in critical condition," Leon said before heading off to the bathroom to clean off his hands.


	9. Chapter 9

The Assassin's Bullet

---Washington D.C., January 10th---

The crimson water disappeared down the drain but the memory of the iron smell that was all too familiar to him, wouldn't fade from Leon's mind. The agent let his hands remain under the cool water for a few more moments before reaching up and turning the faucet off. The water continued to vanish down the drain, taking with it Frederic Downing's blood.

"I'm sorry Leon," a familiar voice said, making Leon snap around fast enough that most people would've thought he wasn't human. His cerulean eyes scanned the bathroom but found neither the Eurasian beauty nor any sign that she'd ever even been in the bathroom to begin with.

_I'm going insane…_

"Leon?" Angela asked, knocking on the door. The agent looked over at the door, his heart suddenly pounding in his chest. Was he going crazy? "What…what do you mean Downing's in critical condition?"

"He was shot," Leon said bluntly. "In the throat by the assassin. She wasn't aiming to kill… I think I was in her way though. She couldn't make the non-fatal shot she wanted."

The door opened and the woman stepped in, her eyes confused. "How do you know?"

"The way he was shot. She'd meant to avoid hitting the major arteries in his throat," he explained, remembering the way she'd looked when he'd seen her outside of the cell.

"Why…why wouldn't she shoot you?" Angela asked. Leon frowned and shook his head.

"God knows. She might just be playing head games with me. Making me think that she didn't want Downing dead," he replied. He didn't believe himself though. He knew Ada better than that.

---Unknown, January 11th---

"This won't hurt too much," the woman said, her voice soft and gentle. The Indian woman stared at her with horror, however, her dark brown eyes boring into the raven haired woman's green ones.

"W..wh...why?" the older woman stammered, tears trickling slowly down her face. There wasn't much that could make somebody who'd seen so much cry. But the assassin holding the eight inch combat blade was one of the things that could do such.

"I don't have a choice…" she replied, shaking her head sadly. She slid the blade into the black sheath on her thigh. "It'll be quick. I will make sure of that."

"You're going to kill Rani, aren't you?" the woman asked, her accented voice suddenly steady and calm. The assassin froze and when she didn't answer, the older woman lunged, a butcher knife clutched tightly in her hand.

The green eyed woman brought her foot around in a low roundhouse kick, catching the woman in the face with her heavy boot. She backed off as the woman collapsed, her legs giving out and the knife sliding from her grasp. The blade hit the ground after the woman did.

Backing off, the assassin pulled out a golden lighter, a phoenix like bird carved into the shining metal. She flicked it open and started the flame, extending her hand and catching the couch on fire. The flames caught the thick fabric immediately, eating away at it with loud cracks and pops.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her eyes burning from a combination of tears and pain from the smoke. "I'm so sorry…"

---Washington D.C., January 11th---

"What? No… No, God no…"

Angela lifted herself from the couch, looking over at Claire who was clutching the phone tightly. Her eyes were shut but tears still found their ways down her cheeks. The S.R.T. member lifted herself from the couch and walked to the redhead, glad that the room was quiet enough for her to somewhat hear what the person on the other end was saying.

"She'll live though?" Claire asked, reaching up and brushing the tears away with the back of her hand. "But she'll live?" A moment of silence followed before Claire let out a loud sigh, somewhat of relief but of slight sorrow as well. "Thank you. We'll be there as soon as we can." She hung up the phone and placed it back in its cradle.

"What's going on, Claire?" Angela asked.

"Rani's aunt's house was…was caught on fire… She was in it…" she explained, tears welling in her eyes and forcing them to glaze over. But suddenly fury replaced the sorrow and Claire snarled, "It was that bitch. That assassin. I'll kill her. I swear to God, I'll break her neck."

---Harvardville, January 11th---

"Aunt?" Rani asked. The woman covered in bandages was a scary sight but the young girl faced it anyway. She looked up at Leon, who'd volunteered to take her to see her aunt, and he offered her a slight smile.

"She's sleeping, kiddo. But you can stay here. I'll be out…" His sentence trailed off as somebody stepped from the shadows of the far end of the room. Clad in a black T-shirt and blue jeans, Ada was still very recognizable. "Rani, stay with your aunt."

He walked over to Ada, using his larger frame to block the assassin from sight. Ada looked up at him and that's when he saw it. Regret. Her eyes were filled with regret. Towards Rani's aunt?

"Ada… Why are you here? Do you like haunting the people you tried to kill?" he asked, forcing the anger out of him. His mind and heart, however, begged him to show her the gentle side of him. The look in her eyes was heartbreaking.

"If I'd tried to kill her, I would've succeeded, Leon. And you know that," Ada said softly. He stared at her, trying to keep up his angry look, but she was right. He knew that she'd purposely not killed Downing or Rani's aunt.

"What're you doing?" he finally asked, his voice losing its harsh tone. She looked away from him and his hand snapped out and grabbed her arm. Her green eyes met his as he furiously snarled, "Answer the God damned question, Ada."

"I can't!" she hissed, her hand snapping up to grab the collar of his shirt. "I can't tell you Leon. You have to understand that."

She jerked her arm free from his grasp and her hand brushed his. She grabbed it, her fingers wrapping around his hand and lifted it until it was about at her waist level. Her other hand released his shirt and lowered to her leg. He heard the sound of metal being freed and then a handle was pressed into his hand. The blade rested against her stomach.

Leon looked down, the metal catching a slight reflection from the luminescent lights above their heads. The knife, a combat knife not unlike his own, was close enough that even a slight movement from him would imbed the blade into her tender flesh. He lifted his eyes to meet hers again.

"No," he mumbled.

"Why?" she asked, a lone tear falling from her right eye and sliding down her cheek.

_She's… She's crying…_

"I-"

"Aunt?" Rani suddenly asked. Ada's hands fell from Leon's and she stepped away immediately, her right hand snapping up and catching the tear quickly. She vanished into the shadows and probably left the room t the same way she'd entered it, though Leon wasn't certain if there was another door or something else. He turned to face Rani and her aunt, the blade hanging limply from his fingers.

---Unknown, January 11th---

"He won't do it," she said. The man sighed bitterly.

"Why not? That man… Does..does he love you?" he asked, startling the assassin.

"I… I don't know," she replied angrily, her voice taking a new tone.

"Right… You'll have to hit closer to home… But you can't kill Redfield or Miller. Not yet. The girl. Take out the girl."

"No!" she snapped, hatred tearing through her immediately.

"Don't kill her! Kidnap her or something like that."

"I'll not touch a hair on Rani's head," she hissed, her left hand clenched so tight that her fingers cut into her skin viciously. Blood oozed slowly from her palm.

"…Not even for Leon?"

Unconsciously, she uncurled her left hand and lifted it to touch the large locket that rested on her neck. The gold object was heavy and she only wore it for certain missions or when she was resting. The metal was cool to the touch and it calmed her immediately.

"Don't."

"Don't what?!" he barked angrily, making the assassin twitch slightly. "Ada, he will _die _if you don't do this. You don't have to harm the girl. But he'll hate you if you seem to have taken her out. He lost Sherry. I doubt he wants to lose Rani."

He hung up before she could respond but she whispered her response anyway. "I hate you…"

---Harvardville, January 11th---

"I don't get it," Ark finally said. Claire shook her head, keeping the phone close to her ear. She would've asked him to explain, but he seemed to read her mind and mumbled, "She's an assassin. In her line of work…mistakes are fatal."

"Maybe she's doing this on purpose," Claire offered, rubbing at her eyes. "Maybe her employer doesn't want them dead. Just…hurt."

"What kind of a moron hires an assassin and doesn't want her to kill people? Especially when it comes to her," Ark scoffed. Angela walked up and motioned to the phone. Claire mouthed Ark in response.

"Maybe it's like a game," she offered.

"…What do you mean?" he asked.

"I don't know. Maybe the fucker who hired her wants us to cower in our boots. But that doesn't seem to be happening. Hell, Leon said she purposely shot past his shoulder," Claire snorted. "Either she's a terrible shot or she just doesn't want to kill us."

"…Or she just doesn't want to kill Leon."

"What?" Claire asked, her voice taking on a slight snap. "How can you-"

"Think about it," Ark interrupted. "When we were talking about the assassin, Leon rattled off about how good she was. What if they know each other?"

"Leon wouldn't do that… He wouldn't just let her get away with killing those people," she argued.

"Claire… Leon's changed since you saw him last… Going through Raccoon…losing Sherry…they changed him. A lot. But…I'm not saying Leon's a bad guy. Just….watch for any…oddities. Like if she has a shot at him or one of you, and she goes for one of you, you know something's going on. I've got to go."

"Bye," she mumbled before snapping her cell phone shut. She looked over at Angela, who's face looked as confused as Claire felt.

---

"Leon, can we talk?" Angela asked, poking her head into Rani's aunt's room. The agent stood and walked out of the room with Angela, looking rather robotic. "Hey, I just wanted to ask you… Do you know the assassin or something?"

A look of confusion flickered across his face and he lifted one eyebrow questioningly. "What do you mean?" he asked.  
"Well… Ark pointed out something to Claire… You knew a lot about the assassin and...well…she's never tried to kill you, though she's had the chance," Angela explained. She searched his face and found nothing, which she was rather grateful for. She didn't want him to turn into a betrayer.

"Dumb luck," he replied calmly, his eyes steady as always.

"Guys," Claire said, walking up to them. "…There's another dead man. A paramedic who'd been at Rani's aunt's house. He apparently helped with the infection in the airport."

Leon nodded and started off down the hall. Claire looked at Angela, her eyes asking a silent question. Angela shook her head and whispered, "He didn't look like he was betraying us. I don't think Ark's right. I think Leon is. I think it's just dumb luck." Claire nodded in agreement and the two women started off after Leon.

A/N: I'm trying to make the chapters longer but I have to go to school so I'll just post this one up. Next chapter will be longer.


	10. Chapter 10

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 11th---

He stepped over the clumps of material that had once been a couch and looked around. His eyes, sharp enough to catch hidden figures in shadows, found nothing except the dull edge of the butcher knife that Rani's aunt had tried to defend herself with.

"Well then… I don't see any paramedic," Claire said. Leon looked over at her and she just shook her head and stepped out of the building. She apparently didn't want to see the ruined building any longer. After all, her friend had almost died in here.

"A trap?" Angela asked.

Before Leon could respond, however, there was a dull clinking noise followed by a loud whoosh of air. Black-grey smoke filled the room and instantly his lungs rejected the sick air. He forced himself not to cough, knowing that an enemy would use the coughing as a way of locating the prey. His eyes burned but didn't react otherwise.

Angela's coughs were close to Leon but he couldn't see through the smoke. However, somebody apparently chose to open the front door because the smoke was starting to clear, exiting out and into the clean air of the outside world. The room cleared of smoke and revealed the very woman he'd known was going to be in there.

"Who the hell are you?" Angela snapped, going for her gun.

Ada looked over at Angela, her green eyes somewhat amused. "You think you still have a gun? Sorry. That's not an assassin's style," she replied, her voice the typical low purr instead of the weakened tone she'd taken in the hospital.

Leon's gun, oddly, was still in its holster. His hand brushed against the steel of the weapon but he didn't take it out. He saw the weapon in Ada's hand. She was, after all, the best of the best. Nobody could challenge her.

"You're the assassin?" Angela asked, her fists clenched.

"No, I just called myself that because the title sounds cool," the raven haired woman scoffed. "I have to wonder how you survived the zombies but your partner didn't. Greg, wasn't it? Rather tall, pretty much a meathead who thought he was better than anybody else. Oh, except you. You two were great friends. So, it makes me wonder how you could care for somebody that much but not really give him a second thought after he's dead."

Angela's eyes widened with fury and she rushed at the assassin. Ada rolled her eyes and agilely cart-wheeled out of the way. Angela put her hands on the wall to stop herself, tears threatening in her eyes. But then the S.R.T. member apparently remembered that there was somebody else in the room with them. She shot Leon a questioning look. Especially since Ada took a step closer to the agent.

"It's true. You moved on so fast it's almost like you didn't care for Greg at all. Then again…how you treated your brother was worse than that," Ada continued. Angela's anger was reaching a deadly point and Leon knew if he didn't stop them now, hell was about to break loose. Angela was a decent fighter but she was no Ada Wong.

"Why aren't you doing anything?" Angela snapped at Leon, who lowered his gaze to the floor. Ada looked back at him as well and he knew Angela was going to take her chance. She lunged at Ada again and the assassin simply caught Angela's fist and brought her knee up, into Angela's ribcage. The S.R.T. member dropped to the floor, clutching her stomach.

The assassin stepped closer to Angela, her green eyes blazing with some unknown anger. Leon started to take a step forward but feared that his interference would only spell Angela's doom.

"The way you interacted with Leon, even after he shot your brother in the head. That's not a very loving sister, now is it? Seemed like you were more interested in trying to get with Mr. Secret Agent then you were sad that your brother, your dear and loving brother, was dead. Killed. Finished. Never coming back," Ada snarled

Angela lifted herself to her feet, the anger in her eyes equivalent to that of a mad dog's. "Shut up," the woman ordered, her voice a dark snarl. "Just shut up."

"Or what? You'll cry for Leon's help? Because you seem to love doing that," Ada scoffed in response.

To Leon's surprise, Angela bolted forward, and caught Ada semi-off guard. The assassin managed to block Angela's attack, a punch aimed for her face, by letting her legs give out and collapsing to the floor. Angela stopped in time to plant her boot on Ada's throat. But the assassin wasn't so easily beat. She aimed her small nine millimeter up at Angela, her eyes calm and collected as always.

"Enough," the agent finally said. "Angela, let her stand."

"What?!" Angela cried, turning her attention to Leon. She realized her mistake a moment too late and Ada brought the butt of the gun down on Angela's knee. The blonde woman yelped out in pain and collapsed. Ada was on her feet in a moment, standing with a feline-like grace. Her raven hair fell back into place and she turned her calm eyes on Leon.

I was wondering if you were going to step in," she pointed out, only sounding slightly out of breath. Angela stood, looking between the two with something close to horror on her face.

"You two know each other?" Angela asked, her voice soft. Ada looked from Leon to Angela and back to Leon. One of her slender black eyebrows lifted questioningly and a small smile appeared on her lips.

"Something like that," Ada said coldly. "Not anything you need to know about, Miller." The Eurasian suddenly lifted her gun and aimed it at Angela's head, the muzzle only about a foot away from the woman's skull. Ada looked at the woman over her gun.

"Guys?" Claire called from outside. "Guys! We have to get back to the hospital!"

"Make her stay outside or you die," Ada ordered icily. "Go out there. Try to trick me and I'll make you scream."

Angela backed away, her eyes meeting Leon's and an odd emotion crossed over her face but she ran out of the house anyway. Ada turned to Leon and shoved her gun into her thigh holster.

"I can't keep doing this for you," she whispered before lifting her eyes to meet his. "You'll find what you're missing at the Dome. She's safe. For now. I can't keep her that way for long."

"What?" Leon asked, shaking his head. Ada grabbed his face, her voice barely above a whisper as she spoke.

"Save the little girl, Leon," she whispered before pressing her lips to his in a light kiss.

---

Rani wasn't scared. The woman had told her that everything was going to be okay and that Leon and Claire and Angela would be there soon to save her. But the young woman who suddenly walked into the big building startled the eight year old.

"Who are you?" Rani asked. Not much could scare the child who'd survived zombies.

"I could ask you the same," the woman replied. She had golden blonde hair that was pulled back in a loose ponytail. Messy bangs fell into her face but didn't hide the stunning steel-blue eyes that watched Rani coldly. "What's your name, kid?"

"Rani," she replied, kicking at the dust with her right foot. "You?"

"I don't really have a name anymore," the woman replied, shaking her head. "Why are you here, Rani?"

"A friend told me to come here. She's really nice. She said she knows Leon so that means she's technically my friend since I know Leon," Rani explained, looking up at the blonde.

The woman had taken up a look of shock and sorrow, her steely eyes revealing some kind of hidden sadness. "Leon…?" she whispered. Rani was about to ask if she knew Leon too when shouts met her ears. She looked at the door, where the woman had walked in from.

"My friends," Rani explained. However, when she looked back to the woman, she noticed that the blonde was gone.

---

"Rani!" Claire cried, running over to the young girl. Angela and Leon stayed back, watching as the redhead hugged the young girl enthusiastically. But Angela was more concerned with Leon.

"What happened back there?" she asked, looking over at the tall agent. He continued to watch the heartwarming scene before him. "Leon…answer me. Please. I just… I just want to know. Do you know her?"

"No," he said finally.

"She-"

"You're going to take an assassin's word over mine?" he interrupted, glancing at her. "I don't know her. Not personally, if that's what you're asking. But all agents have heard of her. We're warned of her."

She smiled faintly and said, "Okay… I believe you." She suddenly grabbed his arm and made him face her, her smile fading. "But… What she said… She…"

"Assassins play head games," Leon replied. "She was trying to make you upset."

"Right…. I seem to forget those kinds of things," Angela said. She suddenly stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Leon's neck. After a moment, he wrapped his arms around her as well.

---Unknown, January 11th---

"You're pushing your luck Agent," the man growled.

"How so?" she asked curiously.

"You told him what was going to happen. That annihilated the point of putting the girl in danger in the first place," he barked.

"I told you I wouldn't hurt the girl."

"I don't care! Fine. Kill the redhead if you must. Kill the girl's aunt. Kill the S.R.T. member. You're running out of time."

She didn't respond, instead she stood and shook her head. Tears trailed down her face but she didn't bother brushing them away. She knew she was running out of time.

_…I'm sorry Rani…_

---Harvardville, January 11th---

_"What happened to your shoulder?" Sherry asked, her steel-blue eyes boring into Leon's pale ones. He looked away from her, remembering the horrible pain that had torn through his shoulder after Annette Birkin had shot him. She'd not meant to shoot him but he'd gallantly tackled Ada, taking the round meant for her heart in his shoulder._

_"I was shot," he said somberly. Sherry gave him a slightly perplexed look. No doubt she was questioning how, in a city full of zombies, Leon's only major wound was a gunshot wound._

_"By who?" she asked, hugging her knees to her chest. _

_"Um… Don't know...honestly… I was walking down a hall and… Somebody shot at me and they got lucky and hit me in the shoulder," he lied. He didn't want Sherry to find out about her mother's deteriorating mind or Ada Wong._

A sharp beeping snapped Leon from his sleep, annihilating the memory with a viciousness he'd encountered for seven years. He limply shoved his hand into his pocket and clutched the phone like device that was trying its hardest to wake him. He pulled it out and looked at the bright screen.

**Meet me outside. **

He frowned, realizing that the number wasn't familiar and that only a few people had the ability to contact him through the government issue device. His guess was that Ada was the one contacting him.

---

She watched as the agent walked over to her, his eyes calm and steady. Ada let a smile grace her lips but by the look on Leon's face, she guessed he wasn't appreciative of her dirty work earlier that afternoon.

_"You… No… Leave me alone…" the woman stammered from behind the bandages. _

_"I can't do that," she replied, gently inserting the needle into the IV tube. "This time… I can't…I can't let you live."_

_"You don't want to do this," Rani's aunt continued. "Don't!"_

_"I'm sorry. I know those words won't do anything. But I have to say it anyway."_

"Why are you doing this?" Leon snarled, stopping when he was about a foot from her. She lowered her gaze to the cold concrete below but the agent moved closer to her, forcing her to lift her eyes to meet his. He looked down at her with steady, cold eyes.

"I can't tell you," she replied.

"Then why did you want me to meet you out here? Or are you going to kill me too?" he snapped, his fists clenching at his sides. She shook her head at him angrily, her heart aching for him. She wanted to tell him. But she couldn't.

"Leon-" she started.

"Don't. Don't make up some half-assed excuse Ada. Just tell me the truth. Please," he said, his voice taking a weakened tone. She looked up, seeing the rookie officer and not the secret agent.

"I can't, Leon. I would if I could but if I told you…we'd…you'd die. And so would all of your friends. The truth…is something that can't be told. I can't tell you. Only my boss can tell you," Ada replied softly, though her voice took a strong tone in it.

He shook his head silently when a something struck the ground near Ada. Her eyes instantly went to the building across the road, where she could see a rifle. Leon had already taken his gun out but Ada reached out and aimed the weapon down.

_No… I couldn't have already run out of time… I…_

"Get out of here," she ordered. The ones in the building probably wouldn't have been able to take Leon on in a one-on-one match. However, there were at least five of them and even Ada couldn't shoot five bullets at the same time. They worked off of each other, much like the way a pack of wolves does.

"Now," she hissed. Leon's eyes found hers and she saw that same damned dedication that she'd seen in Raccoon City. The feature she'd found so remarkable was about to cost him his life.

To her surprise the agent aimed his gun at the building and pulled the trigger. She heard the crack of his gun but what amazed her was the yelp of pain from the building. He'd hit his target.

"How many are there?" Leon asked, casting Ada a look. She pulled her own handgun from its holster.

_What's wrong with me? I'm so unprepared… Usually I would've taken out three of them without thinking…_

"Five. Four now," she replied, shooting at the building. The gun snapped in her hands but she heard the muffled shout. Unfortunately, their good luck was not going to last. One of the attackers opened fire with what she guessed was an M-16, tearing the sidewalk to pieces. She grabbed Leon and tugged him back into the alleyway that was in-between the hotel he'd been staying at and the building next door.

"Are they all in that building?" Leon asked, leaning against the cold wall. Ada shook her head.

"It's a trick. They're probably circling us," Ada said, her raven colored hair falling into her face. "We're trapped. In an alleyway. Fun."

He looked down at her and she gave her a small smile. But the smile fell when she heard the sound of glass crunching. Bullets ate away at the wall Leon was leaning against so while he dealt with them, Ada turned to deal with their intruder. For all she knew, it could've been a cat or dog. Though she didn't think cats and dogs walked around when guns were going off.

She stepped carefully around the pieces of glass and paper littering the alleyway, her eyes moving between everything. She heard Leon's gun go off and some kind of reassurance filled her thoughts.

_Where are the cops? Why aren't we hearing sirens? Why isn't anybody coming outside to investigate why bullets are going everywhere? Where are Leon's little friends?_

Something moved and she aimed at it. A can being kicked out. She realized her mistake at the last second as two bright flashes occurred from the shadows, illuminating the alley only long enough that Ada could shot the attacker in the head before her knees gave out.

_Great…_

---

"Were those gunshots?" Ark asked, his voice sounding odd over the phone. Claire peered out the window of the bedroom and frowned. The sun was still hours away but every now and then the street in front of the hotel was illuminated with bright lights. Then, everything stopped.

"They were… They stopped all of a sudden," she said softly.

"You might want to go check," Ark offered.

"Right. I'll talk to you later. Oh…next time, make sure it's not 12:30 over here when you call," she replied.

"Hey, it's almost that late over here. I'll talk to you later Claire."

She hung up the phone and walked out of the room, spotting a worried looking Rani, an upset looking Angela, but no Leon.

---

"Ada," Leon breathed, kneeling at her side. The assassin was on her knees, her right arm wrapped around her waist. But even the darkness didn't hide the river of blood that was pouring over her pale skin. Ada's eyes met his and, to his horror, he saw acceptance there. Like with the tyrant in Raccoon.

"I was…supposed…to die…. Either way works," she breathed.

Leon had to hope that pain and blood loss was making her say things that made no sense. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and moved to stand up when Ada's left hand grabbed his shirt collar.

"Don't…." she mumbled, shaking her head.

"Don't what? Don't save you? No… Don't pull this bullshit on me, Ada," he growled, standing up enough so that he pick her up bridal style, his right arm under her knees. She shook her head again but her hand released his shirt.

_Now comes the hard part. Getting Claire and Angela to accept Ada._

---

"What the hell?" Claire asked when she spotted Leon with an unconscious woman in his arms.

"…That's her… That's the assassin… What's going on?" Angela asked, joining Claire. The agent watched them both carefully, his eyes almost furious.

"She got shot," he started.

"No shit. Now do us a favor and leave the bitch out here to die," Claire snarled. "She killed Rani's aunt, Leon!"

"You think I don't know that?!" he snapped suddenly, raising his voice to the two women for the first time ever. "You think I don't know exactly what she's done? But that doesn't change the fact that I will do whatever I can to help her. She's…. She's done the same for me. It's only fair."

Angela frowned and asked, "So…when you said you didn't know her…you were lying?"

"Yes," he replied, no hesitation in his voice. Blood dripped from the woman's shirt but Claire just shook her head at Leon.

"Take her somewhere else. I'm not letting that bitch near Rani," she snarled.

"Who paid for the room?" Leon suddenly asked, his fury obviously rising again.

"That has nothing to do with anything," Claire hissed.

"Oh really? Let's ask the hotel managers what that has to do with anything," he replied, shifting slightly.

"Leon, she'll murder us," Angela whispered.

"Too…late for that," the woman mumbled suddenly. Leon's eyes brightened for a second but Angela heard Claire scoff.

"You think I'm going to take an assassin's word?" she asked darkly.

"Nope," the woman replied. Leon shook his head and walked past the two women.

"The only way you're going to stop me, is if you shoot me," he said without looking back.

---Unknown, January 12th---

"…We're run out of time," the man mumbled, rubbing his hand over his face. His desk was cluttered with papers, speaking of viral outbreaks occurring all over America now.

"Mr. President," a man said, sticking his head into the room. The man at the desk looked up, trying to remember the intruder's name but only blank spaces came up. "We need a plan. What are we going to do with the cities?"

_Out of time…_

"…In two days… If the cure is not deposited and the cities are not clean…fire bomb them. If that doesn't work…" He trailed off, hoping the man with no name got the idea. But he just stared at the man at the desk expectantly. "Nuclear weapons are permitted if the fire doesn't annihilate the T-Virus."


	11. Chapter 11

The Assassin's Bullet

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"New York City has officially fallen to the T-Virus," the newswoman said, her face flustered. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes. "This is the eighteenth major city to collapse to the virus. This is Tina Mainer, reporting on the fall of New York City."

President of the United States David Graham ran a hand tiredly over his face. Over the last few days of no contact from either of his agents in Harvardville, the once calm looking man had dark bags under his suddenly dull blue eyes. His once rich brown hair was faded with grey and he almost permanently had a scowl on his face.

The fire bombing had been stopped only four hours before it was to commence. The antidote for the T-Virus had arrived in the cities with the worst infection rates. But it wasn't doing enough. The virus continued to spread. It was officially stretching from California to Maine. Florida and other lower states were safe but Graham wasn't certain for how much longer. And even worse was the fact that Canada and Mexico had recently started sending the President messages that they too had virus riddled cities.

England and Australia had sent troops into the U.S. in an attempt to staunch the steady flow of zombies that continued to pour out of cities like L.A. and San Francisco. But that hadn't helped. France was the next to respond, followed by the United Nations sending out international troops to help the U.S. continue with its life as a super power. The world was actually pulling together to help America. The virus was, after all, a common enemy that had to be stopped.

"Mr. President," Ingrid Hunnigan suddenly said, startling Graham from his thoughts. He lifted his head and smiled weakly at the young woman. But even at 25, Hunnigan looked more exhausted than the President himself.

"Yes, Agent Hunnigan?" he asked, his voice croaking out weakly. The agent lowered her gaze to the floor. "It's here, isn't it?"

"Two cases have been reported in hospitals, sir. We have to move you, Ashley, and First Lady Graham into the Bunker, sir," Hunnigan said, raising her eyes to meet his.

"Ingrid…this might be the end. And if it is…I want my most faithful of agents to at least call me and my wife by our first names. Please, call me David. Now… Please give me good news about Agent Kennedy," he said, praying for the best about the young agent.

Hunnigan's eyes fell again and she said, "I'm sorry… There's no change. We haven't heard from Leon…uh…Agent Kennedy since…well…"

"Yes… I feared as much. And my other agent?" he asked. He could only hope for the best. That both of the agents, so superior, were at least still alive.

"We've not heard from her either, David," Hunnigan said. "I…I fear for the worst."

"As do I," he admitted. He finally stood and nodded. "One last address to the country. I want them to see how much of a coward I am."

---Harvardville, January 15th---

Rani ran the hairbrush through the unconscious assassin's short raven hair, her fingers smoothing out certain sections. Leon had watched the child do this for three days. For three days he'd watched as the assassin remained in her coma-like sleep. For three days he'd listened to Claire whisper curses towards him and the deadly woman who looked so peaceful asleep. For three days he'd dealt with internal and external pain.

"Leon," Angela suddenly said, catching the tall man's attention. He looked up from where he sat, which was at Ada's side in a chair he'd pulled closer to the bed. "…You need to come see this."

He cast the young girl a look and she just smiled at him. He stood and walked out of the room, his muscles complaining at the sudden movement. Stepping into the living room, Leon realized the seriousness of the situation by the fact that Claire didn't call him an asshole for knowing the assassin.

"They're calling it his last address," Angela said from Leon's side. He hadn't even noticed her.

On the TV was a man that, if Leon didn't know better, the agent would've said that he was an imposter standing in for the President. Graham looked absolutely horrible, haggard and emaciated. The fall of America was taking its toll on the country's leader.

"My fellow Americans… I don't know what I should say to you. I'll admit that. I'm horrible at speeches. Always have been. Guess that's why I always wondered how I'd become president back in 2004. Christ…

"Lord forgive me. I've been lying to my people, my country, for too long. In 2004 my daughter was kidnapped by a terrorist organization. They were going to release a deadly parasite on America, through my daughter. I didn't know. I didn't care. I just reacted. I sent a man, a Secret Service agent barely out of training, to save my daughter. A single man. Sure, it was safer. He wouldn't stand out as much. But I didn't send him alone.

"God… I sent…I sent a woman there too. I'd known about the parasite for a long time. She was to get me the master sample. So, while the man was going after my daughter, she was going after the parasite. Ashley got home safe… But I was…I was happier to see the parasite sample. My own daughter didn't mean as much as that damned bug."

Leon felt his jaw drop and he imagined that he wasn't breathing and his heart was no longer beating. Before he could register what he'd just heard, the President continued:

"Last year, Harvardville Airport was infected by Frederic Downing. The very agent that saved my child was sent to deal with the incident. He had experience with the matter. When he was sent, again the woman was sent too. She obtained samples of the antivirus and samples of the G-Virus and the T-Virus. Downing… He tried to bargain with the agent and two others, a civilian and a S.R.T. member. They should've shot him.

"However, the incident was ended and everything returned to normal. But God in Heaven, strike me down… I gave my agent, the woman, an order. The man who saved my daughter was targeted by companies who viewed him as a threat. The only way to protect him was to send the best assassin alive after him. And she would have to die by his hands. But I knew, God I knew, that he wouldn't hurt her. They had a past, you see.

"So, I gave her the order to slowly pick off survivors of the Harvardville incident. Families of these people…it was me. I told her to kill them. She was following orders. She failed. She wasn't killed by the Secret Service agent. She was killed by somebody, or something, else. But that does not…fix…what happened. She's dead and I'm alive. The assassin, the agent, was a hero. And she died for it. For us. For me. For that man."

Leon felt Claire and Angela staring at him but he couldn't take his eyes from the screen.

_Ada…_

"All of you are probably wondering why I'm babbling on about an assassin and an agent. I want you all to see how much of a coward I am. I feared protecting my own agent so I sent an assassin to get herself killed by his hands to protect her. I was happier at seeing a parasite than I was my daughter, my baby girl.

"So, America… If… When we survive this, when the T-Virus is destroyed, I will be stepping down. You don't need a coward, a liar, running you. You need a true fighter. My vice president will step into my place. Thank you for listening to a man's story. Please, I do not expect you to forgive me. But, for those of you who lost loved ones to the hands of the assassin, forgive her. That is all.

"God bless America."

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"Ashley," Graham said, looking at his daughter who was staring at him with a teary face. "I love you, sweetie. Hate me all you want. I want you to. But understand that I love you."

She nodded her head before turning and walking away. Graham nodded and watched as his wife rushed off to comfort their daughter. He smiled sadly and put his hand into his pocket, feeling the reassuring steel of the .38 his agent had given him.

_"Good gun for a man like you."_

_"Why?"_

_"You don't like guns. You were in Nam. You deserve to hate them. A .38 isn't a gun. It's a defender."_

Graham walked after his family, quietly reaching up and brushing the single tear that had escaped his eye from his face.

---

Ark hugged Lily to him and watched as Lott stared at the TV in disgust. "That bastard!"

"Lott," Lily whimpered at her brother, her tear soaked face begging her brother to calm down. Ark nodded at his adopted son.

"He…" Lott started. Ark motioned for Lott to join him and the young man did so, pressing himself to his father's side.

"He's exactly what he said he is. But that doesn't matter at the moment," the man said somberly, staring at the screen as the President walked away.

_She wasn't… They knew each other… Dear God._

---Harvardville, January 15th---

"Is it true?" Leon asked the unconscious woman, his eyes focused on her silent face. "I was supposed to kill you to live?"

Angela and Claire hadn't bothered asking the agent any questions when he'd shoved past them and walked into the room. Rani had realized he'd wanted to be alone and had left the room, leaving the hairbrush on the dresser next to the door.

"Why?" he whispered. "Why didn't you just tell me? You worked for him. Why wouldn't you just tell me?"

"Maybe…" a soft voice suddenly said. He looked over to see Rani poking her head into the room. "Maybe you should kiss her."

"What?" he asked. That was definitely the oddest thing he'd ever heard.

"You know how in fairytales, when the prince kisses the princess, she wakes up? It might work," Rani explained, motioning between Leon and Ada. He glanced over at the slumbering woman, who could easily be mistaken for the goddess of beauty and love Aphrodite herself.

"Rani…" he started. But the child shook her head before he could finish.

"It's worth a shot, Leon," the child said before pulling out of the room.

Leon examined Ada's silent face, realizing that blood loss and internal trauma could very well kill the woman. He hated that he hadn't taken her to the hospital but he'd been so afraid that the government would hear and that she would be torn from him. Again.

Without a second thought, Leon leaned over and gently kissed Ada. When he pulled away, he whispered, "Please…please wake up. I can't lose you again." He stood and left the room, refusing to let the burning sensation in his eyes turn to tears.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"Please let us through!" somebody shouted over the roar of voices. Hunnigan had never seen so many people in one place in her life. It was a literal sea of people, all of them reaching out to grab at the agents protecting the important government officials as they climbed into the Blackhawk helicopters designed to take them to the White House.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please calm down," a voice boomed over a megaphone. "Return to your homes immediately. The antivirus is being distributed through homes and if you don't go home, you won't get it." Hunnigan looked over at the man speaking through the megaphone. Jonathon.

She sighed and that's when the screaming started. A ripple went through the crowd as people tried to crowd closer to the helicopters and their living shield of Marines and agents. She saw where the ripple had started. Far in the back of the monster crowd. People were collapsing, succumbing to the virus.

"It's here," a Marine hissed.

The commander of the squad looked at Hunnigan and she simply lowered her head. Graham had given her the power. She had to initiate the termination of the virus if it was to make it this far.

"Annihilate the threat," she whispered. The Marines, with trembling hands, lifted their M4s and opened fire on the crowd.

---Harvardville, January 15th---

"Oh my God," Angela whispered as Leon stepped back into the living room. He glanced over at the TV, past the woman's shoulder, and stared at the sight.

Marines were lifting their guns, aiming at a crowd, when the channel went blank. He could only guess that the virus had made it to the White House and that they were now doing everything they could to protect the politicians and their families. That's how it always worked.

"How can they do something like that?" Angela asked, turning to Leon. He wanted to ask why she would ask him, but he kept his mouth shut. Between Ada and the President and the Marines, he found it was impossible for him to form a coherent sentence. "Leon? Are you okay?"

He lifted his eyes to meet Angela's, and he could only hope that they portrayed his feelings for him.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"Ark," Lott whispered softly, quiet enough to not wake his slumbering sister. The man looked over at him, hardly able to see the young man's face because of the darkness in the apartment. "Are we going to die?"

"No," Ark replied, shaking his head. "We didn't die on Sheena."

"But that was only a few thousand people. How many people live in D.C.?" Lott asked.

"Stop being such a pessimist," his sister grumbled. Ark smiled at her but the smile fell.

"We won't die Lott."

_I wish I could say the same for Leon. …And Claire…_

---Harvardville, January 15th---

She was so accustomed to pain that waking to it was nothing. But waking to a soft voice reading something to her was definitely new. She remained still, listening as the voice, Rani Chawla she guessed, as it read from a familiar story. Snow White.

But then shouting met the silent assassin's ears. Insults and bad names were hurled at somebody by a female voice, a voice she vaguely remembered. With all of her strength, the assassin opened her eyes and lifted herself into a sitting position, her body begging her to stop.

Rani's eyes were the size of dollar coins as she finished lifting herself up, propping herself up against the headboard of the bed. The girl closed the book and set it on the floor before standing up.

"I'll be right back," she said before running out of the room.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"You'll be the downfall of this country, Graham," Senator McKenzie of Nebraska snarled at the President. The older, and more powerful, man looked down at the senator from where he stood on the platform with the Presidential seal behind him.  
"Will I now?" Graham asked. "And it wasn't the fact that you wouldn't listen to me when I said the viruses were deadly?"

"Your contact, the woman who gave you the G-Virus from Raccoon, she wasn't trustworthy back then. Why you admitted her into your own bodyguards, I'll never understand. But she didn't offer enough information on the viruses to let us completely understand what we were up against," McKenzie snapped furiously.

"Really? Because when she said that one would turn people into zombies and the other would turn people into mutated freaks, I'm pretty certain I didn't want to fuck with those viruses," the President replied darkly. The senators and other politicians lowered their heads. Only Ashley continued to stare at her father.

"Dad," she finally said, walking over to him. It was the first time she'd addressed him as her father since he admitted about the parasite and about the woman. "…Is Leon…alive?"

_She always did like him… Guess that's why I wanted to keep him out of the White House. I didn't need her losing him. Not so close to home at least._

But Graham didn't state his pessimistic answer. Instead, with a drawn smile, he said, "Probably. You know hat man. Nothing can bring him down."

---Harvardville, January 15th---

"No, no! Fuck that! I'm sick of housing a God damned murderer!" Claire shouted at Leon. The agent still hadn't truly replied. Angela had been instead.

All of the things he'd been dealing with were becoming too much for him to handle. He was used to weird things happening. But to find out a woman he thought was a traitor was actually working _with _him and to find out that his boss wanted _him _to murder _her _was too much for him to completely accept. Seven years of his life had blatantly been screwed over by the President's speech. And it was only getting worse.

"Leon," a soft voice said, a hand latched onto his cargo pants. He looked down at Rani, who stared between him and the ranting Claire. Leon wasn't certain if the young child knew her aunt was dead. He vaguely remembered Claire waiting until the last minute to tell Sherry her mother was dead. She didn't like breaking bad news. "She's awake."

He looked up at the room and, while Angela tried to calm Claire, he walked towards the room with Rani following him.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

Ark listened to the moans of the undead as they got closer and closer the apartment building. Some survivors on the lower floors had built barricades in front of the double doors to slow the undead down, but he doubted that would last.

He looked up to see somebody sprinting across the street when something bolted from the darkness and took him down. He watched as the thing, possibly a dog, went for the man's throat and started to tear at the tender flesh protecting the delicate veins within. Blood sprayed onto the asphalt and Ark tore his eyes away from the scene.

Looking back at Lott and Lily, Ark could only do something he hadn't done in a long time. Sheena had almost annihilated his faith, since he'd believed that God had abandoned him. But the agent clasped his hands together, pressed his back to a wall, closed his eyes, and whispered out a prayer to the heavens above.

---Harvardville, January 15th---

She looked exhausted to say the least but when he walked over to her side, her eyes brightened somewhat. Rani pulled herself up onto the foot of the bed and Leon sat in the chair next to Ada.

"Who's shouting out there?" the assassin asked, cringing at the way her voice sounded. Three days without much water except for the little bit Rani had managed to give her from time to time had caused a very dry throat. Rani immediately hopped off the bed and ran off to get water for the woman.

"Claire. She doesn't approve of you," Leon replied softly. Her lips curved into a slight smile before she looked over at him.

"Why… Why did you protect me?" she asked, her eyes finding his. He wanted to lower his gaze but he refused to be the coward he might've once been considered. He held her gaze.

"Because I always have and I always will," he responded immediately. Rani returned to the room and handed Ada a glass of cold water. The child backed off and stood near the bed. "Did I not protect you in Raccoon?"

She smiled but lowered her gaze from his face to the blankets covering her legs. "I was supposed to die," she mumbled, the smile diminishing, and she didn't bother with the water. She simply held the glass in her hand.

"I know." Ada's eyes filled with a confusion Leon knew all too well. He smiled sadly and said, "The President…gave up. He told…America who you are. And what your mission was."

She again looked at him, her eyes losing their confusion and taking on a slightly relieved look. "Guess that's a good thing…" she mumbled.

"Kinda. Maybe."

"…You don't know what I am though, do you?" she asked, looking at Rani. The girl smiled and left the room again, leaving the adults alone. Leon shook his head and waited for a moment. With a small smile, Ada said, "I'm Secret Service. And I'm technically your boss."

A/N: If you can't tell, I'm trying to make the chapters longer. Anyway, I liked writing the President's speech. I know it's not really a speech and is more like a confession, but come on, he deserves to get that stuff off his chest. (Now will you guys stop hating the poor dude?)


	12. Chapter 12

The Assassin's Bullet

Washington D.C., January 15th---

"Sir, England is offering us three more days of protection. They won't stay past that," somebody informed Graham. The President glanced up and felt a bitter smile grow on his face but he refused to say what he was thinking.

"Oh well. Australia? France? The U.N.? And what of Canada and Mexico?" he asked, the smile never leaving his face. The man seemed slightly taken aback by the President's grin but he said nothing about it.

"They'll stay until England goes. And… Canada has officially fallen to the virus. Mexico is…falling…fast… Mexico has maybe three or four more days before they fall completely, sir," he said softly.

Graham scoffed and said, "They should've listened to America when we offered them the chance."

"Uh… Sir… Are you feeling alright?" the man asked. Graham wondered if this was his Secretary of Defense. He could never remember their names anymore.

"I'm fine. But you should leave. You're rather annoying. Tell…Tell England thank you for the help. But fuck you for abandoning us," the President said. His head pounded viciously and he laughed suddenly. "And I actually want you to say that."

The man nodded slowly and backed away from the President. The man in charge could hardly care less.

_Oh, this is one hell of a party…_

---Unknown, January 15th---

The zombie grabbed a hold of the man and sank its square teeth into his shoulder. He screamed as the undead yanked its head to the right, tearing out a chunk of flesh the size of an average man's fist out of his shoulder. Blood gushed from the wound like a water fall and turned his once white shirt a deep crimson. The zombie pulled slightly away, its decaying fingers still latched onto his clothes as it chewed and swallowed. The undead lowered his head to the man's shoulder to rip out another chunk when a loud crack echoed through the air and the man's head exploded in a splash of blood, bone, and grey matter.

The shooter lowered her gun, her steel-blue eyes void of emotion. She'd killed the man to prevent two things from happening: she didn't want him to suffer anymore and she didn't want another zombie.

The young woman, nineteen going on twenty years old, walked down the street, avoiding the slow zombies as they reached for her. Luckily, most of the zombies found themselves walking around with ruined joints and leg problems thanks to bear traps and other primitive methods of taking the undead out. The girl was appreciative.

Harvardville, the sister city to the one she walked in, was one of the few cities with a well planned defense against the undead. She regretted leaving the city. But she was returning. Again, for two reasons: to be safe and to talk to Leon.

She aimed her Desert Eagle at the zombie closest to her, its arms extended towards her. She pulled the trigger and the creatures head, softened by decay, exploded in a shower of gore as the .50 caliber round tore through its skull and brain. The teen brought the gun closer to her face, a sly smile gracing her lips.

"Thank you for the taste in guns, Leon," she mumbled aloud.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"Come on, you two!" Ark shouted, opening fire on an advancing group of undead. Lott and Lily ran up to his side, their eyes steady and calm. After dealing with the deadly virus seven years ago, they pretty much accepted what they were dealing with at the moment.

Ark broke into a sprint as soon as the zombies large group was reduced to only a few left. He smashed a fresh clip into his gun, firing on the few that dared get close enough to him or his children.

"Where are we going, Ark?" Lott asked, breaking into a sprint after Ark. The three of them ran past the diminishing crowd of zombies. Lily grabbed onto Lott's hand, who gave it a gently but reassuring squeeze.

"Hunnigan told me about a safe house being used to protect agents and Marines who escaped the riot earlier!" Ark shouted over his shoulder, firing at a zombie as it stumbled at them. Suddenly, the world exploded in a flash of white and Ark feared that his prayer had gone unanswered.

---Unknown, January 15th---

"So, sweetheart, what are you doing out here in these dark times?" the slimy looking man asked, circling the teenager like she was a piece of fresh meat. The teen felt a deadly smile growing on her lips but she didn't reply. "Hm…no response? Do you not deem me important enough to-"

The crimson head pounced onto the man, its fangs burrowing into his throat. He screamed loudly but the teen didn't shoot him in the head. She didn't think he deserved the pity. The crimson head, too engaged with its meal, ignored the teenager as she turned and walked away, her long blonde hair swinging in the air as she walked.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"He's lost it, hasn't he?" Ashley asked her mother softly as they sat on the chairs in front of the President's podium. Her father was pacing the platform, babbling to himself. Ashley wasn't even certain if he was speaking English anymore. It sure didn't sound like it.

"No… It's just stress," her mother lied. Ashley shot her a dark look, remembering when Leon told her that people who messed with their hands when they were speaking were typically lying. Her mother was fumbling with the hem of her shirt.

"You don't have to lie to me, Mom," Ashley said softly. "I know when Dad's stressed and this isn't stress. Just… Maybe if we all accept it, things will stop being so bad."

"I doubt that," a new, accented voice said. Ashley turned to see a man with a bandage around his throat, his hair a fine silver-grey color. She recognized him. Frederic Downing.

"You're alive!" her father cried happily. He walked down the steps that led from the platform to the lower level, his right hand in his pocket. "And here I was, worried that my assassin hadn't done her job properly. I wanted you alive, you see. She reminded me about the bombs the terrorists had set up, the ones that would fill the cities full of the T-Virus. Interestingly enough, we could never find the switch." The man suddenly pulled his hand from his pocket and aimed a small gun at Downing. Ashley recognized it as a snub nosed .38, a gun Leon had let her see once a while back.

Downing had time to gasp before her father aimed lower and shot the silver haired man in the knee.

---Harvardville, January 15th---

"My boss?" Leon asked, more confused then ever before. First she says Secret Service. Then she says she's his boss. Leon wondered if Ada was screwing with him.

"Remember those years ago when your commanding officers told you that the only way you were going to get into the Secret Service is if the 'boss' of the Secret Service recommended you to the President?" she asked softly. As he nodded slowly, she took a delicate sip of water. Afterwards, she questioned, "And do you remember how the 'boss' did exactly that for no reason?" He nodded again. "I did that. I recommended you. I said that you were as good as I am, maybe even better. You don't hesitate to throw your life away for somebody else and while elsewhere that would be a fatal flaw, this time it was a very good thing."

He lowered his gaze and stared at the floor. Ada moved in her bed slightly, the blankets crinkling loudly around her form. That's when he realized that she was still in her blood soaked T-shirt.

He turned to say something to her right as she asked, "Can I take a shower or will they not let me do such?" Leon dropped his gaze to the floor again, realizing that he'd lost his chance to ask questions anyway.

"Yeah, go ahead. It's right there," he said while pointing at the bathroom door. She moved slightly, hissing angrily and returned to her original position. No doubt the wounds were still bad. "Here, I'll help you," he offered, standing. She extended him a hand and he took it, gently tugging her into a sitting position until he could wrap his left arm around her shoulders. Her right arm wrapped around his shoulders.

"I have to stand on my own, you know," she mumbled. He nodded. "Did… Did the bullets go through?" He nodded again. He knew that had the bullets not gone through, Ada would've died. She was lucky they had gone through.

They moved enough that Ada could touch the ground with her feet, which were covered in socks. Rani had taken the assassin's boots off in an attempt to make her more comfortable. The woman noticed but said nothing. Instead, she stood, flinching slightly at the movement. Leon's arm moved from around her shoulders to her waist.

"You good?" he asked. She moved slightly, her head resting on his shoulder, and she nodded. Together, they walked to the bathroom, Ada's arm around his shoulders. Her fingernails bit into his skin slightly but he ignored it. That was nothing compared to what she was going through, he was certain.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

Downing had never felt so much pain. When he'd been shot in the throat, he'd gone numb immediately. He didn't even remember when the agent had pressed his hands to the dieing man's throat. But now the pain was all too real, all too there.

"Dad!" Ashley screamed, running to her father. The man grabbed the girl's arm and moved her behind him, stepping closer to Downing as he did so.

"My country's dieing because of that fucking virus. What's going on?!" Graham roared, his typically steady voice sounding like an enraged lion's roar. Downing tried to crawl away but he saw the too red blood covering the cold cement that served as the Bunker's floor. He wanted to crawl but the pain was too much.

"I don't know!" Downing finally cried, his voice higher pitched than usual. He remembered sounding like this when the agent, Claire Redfield, and the S.R.T. member had him pinned down.

"You don't know? Really? Because you were the last person to deal with those fucking terrorists!" the President shouted, his eyes burning with an insane fire. Downing cowered in front of the man, trying to use his arms to shield him as Graham pointed the gun at his chest, the hammer back and everything.

"Miller had the trigger! I think he had the trigger! It's with his body in the Dome!" Downing replied, his hands shaking as his knee continued to bleed and his body started to realize it was losing too much blood.

"Then what good are you?" the President asked, his voice no longer a roar. Instead, it was soft and actually questioning. But Downing could only watch in horror as Graham pulled the trigger on the gun.

---Harvardville, January 15th---

Leon was going to stay in the room in case Ada needed his help but the assassin hadn't even gotten into the shower. Instead, she stood in front of the mirror, her shirt lifted so she could see her stomach, and stared at the nasty wounds covering her midsection. Two similar scars, eerily close to each other size and looks wise, and two bullet holes that hadn't healed yet marred her pale skin.

Her back had once had scars, after Raccoon City. But those had actually healed properly. Sometimes, she knew, it was possible to see the scars. They were especially visible when her dreams got bad and her past haunted her. Or when she had any dream about Leon.

Speaking of Leon… Her mind cruelly pulled her back to the time in Leon's apartment, in his bathroom. She remembered the way his hands felt on her, the way he tasted, the way he kissed.

The assassin shook her head and let her shirt fall and cover her stomach again. She leaned back against the wall, her skin cooled by the smooth wall immediately. Her legs wobbled warningly, reminding the assassin that she'd been shot and had been unconscious for some time.

_Forgot to ask Leon how long I've been unconscious…_

She sighed and walked over to the shower, twisting the faucet so hot water poured out. She couldn't stand cold water.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"Who are you?" a voice asked as a hand clamped onto Ark's jacket. The white light started to fade and he found himself staring into the face of a Marine.

"Ark… Detective Ark Thompson," he finally managed, his head throbbing. He struggled to break free of the man's grip and turned, looking for his son and daughter. "Where's Lott and Lily?" he asked, shooting the Marine a furious look.

"Ark!" Lott cried, running over to him suddenly. Lily smashed into Ark's side and they stayed close to him as the Marine's, who'd more than likely saved their lives, walked over.

"Detective?" the Marine asked.

"I work for the government. Worked… I'm like a special detective," Ark explained.

"Right… Hunnigan's been waiting for you," the Marine finally replied.

---Harvardville, January 15th---

Leon lay on the bed, his chest slowly moving up and down with each breath. He listened to the steady stream of water as it ran through the building and into the shower. Rani had come in earlier and dropped off some food for the assassin before leaving. He had a bad feeling Claire had decided to drop the news to the young girl.

Ada's sudden awakening was startling to say the least but it was also a weight off his chest. He'd had such a great amount of fear that he was going to lose her again, especially when she'd stopped accepting the water that Rani had poured carefully down her throat.

However, even with her awake, Leon still harbored silent fears. He feared that Angela and Claire were going to try and do something less than pleasant to the woman. He feared that his shoddy attempts at first aid weren't going to hold and Ada would succumb to the wounds in her stomach. He feared that America would fall and that they would all end up being finished off by the undead that roamed the streets.

Angle walked into the room suddenly, interrupting his thoughts. Leon lifted himself into a sitting position, his eyes catching hers as she walked in. "Here, these are for…um…your friend. I thought she would appreciate have clean clothes," Angela said, extending her arms to Leon. A small pile of clothing rested there and Leon stood to take them.

_Tell them her name. Maybe if they realize she has a name, they won't act the way they are towards her. Unlikely but anything to get Claire to shut up._

"And Claire… She's not going to stop calling her that anytime soon" Angela rapidly added. "I know it's not right but…you can't expect us to like her."

"I don't," Leon bluntly remarked. "I just don't want the insults to go to the next level. She's hurt….but I've seen her hold her own while even worse off." He almost imaged the catwalk, when Ada's small weapon had been the only thing standing between him and death. He inwardly ordered the thoughts away and looked past Angela, where Rani stood, peeking into the bedroom. Angela looked back as well before turning back to Leon.

"Claire told her. Rani didn't believe her but…she hasn't come in yet so…" Angela said softly. When Angela said Claire's name, Rani ducked away and disappeared. Leon wasn't certain if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

_And all of this is happening in one day. Amazing._

"Well, I'll go…" Angela said, pushing the clothes into Leon's chest. He moved an arm up to stop them from falling and watched as she walked away. As soon as she was gone, Leon dropped the clothes onto the bed and sighed softly.

He liked her. He truly did. But Ada… What he'd always felt for Ada was something…else. Ada had been his saving grace in Raccoon. She'd saved his life in several ways but mostly, she was a living being who gave him reason to fight. And unlike Claire, who'd been too thickheaded to listen to the young cop back then, Ada had listened to him. Sure, it had taken awhile, but after she listened to him, they were inseparable. And of course, she'd literally saved his life. She'd stopped Mr. X. She'd sacrificed herself for _him_**,**for the rookie cop who couldn't do anything right. As much as he _liked _Angela, she wasn't Ada.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

Ashley managed to yank the gun up at the last moment, the bullet burying itself into the concrete next to Downing's head instead of his heart. Secret Service, who'd been confused on whether they should stop the President or not, rushed over to help the First Daughter. They grabbed a hold of the President and tried to keep him calm but it was failing horribly.

Ashley tugged the gun out of her father's fingers and backed off, her mother racing to her side immediately. President Graham's military training seemed to kick in as he tried to outfight the Secret Service, but the bodyguards held tight and held strong. The were, after all, trained to deal with everything, no matter how odd.

"Are you still going to say it's stress?" Ashley asked her mother softly, the gun hanging limply in her hand.

---Unknown, January 15th---

"One, two, three, four, five zombies," the girl counted, her fingers tightening around the grip of the Desert Eagle with each increasing number. She aimed the gun and popped off five rounds, each .50 bullet finding its mark immediately. She was pretty good with the gun, when she wanted to be. But most of the time she didn't use guns. Just didn't suit her. "Now, where are you?" she wondered.

She walked through the barren street of Harvardville's sister city, searching for the train station that led to Harvardville. Though subways were often times just as infected as the above world, she planned on using the black tunnels to keep relatively safe. They weren't as bad as the streets monster wise.

Only four hours of daylight remained and the monsters were coming out to play. She'd seen several lickers, which were expected. But already she was seeing the actual experiments, the ones that shouldn't be out and about. She guessed that the companies were releasing their toys, much the way Umbrella had.

"Stupid Wesker," she mumbled aloud, thinking about the bastard she'd sworn to kill one day. She hated him. Oh, how she hated him. He'd ruined her life and had attempted to brainwash her. But heartbroken or not, she'd stood tall, only acting brainwashed because that got her time to be alone. She'd followed the way of the assassin, the one Graham had spoken about earlier that day.

_Ditch Umbrella, join the government._

But she, the teenager, hadn't joined the government. Instead, she just ran from Wesker and his little friends. They'd tried to catch her but America had acted as a huge shield. Nobody like Wesker was getting into the country.

_Been in America two months and already shit hits the fan._

Her eyes caught the glint of a sign, a subway sign, and she grinned. Thoughts of Wesker vanished, replaced by thoughts of hope.

---Washington D.C., January 15th---

"It's good to see you're alright, Ark," a tired looking Hunnigan said as Ark and his children were led into the house. He looked around, recognizing several other agents and of course the Marines.

"Yeah… Why aren't you guys with…?"

"The President? We were… Well, did you see the Marines open fire on a crowd?" Hunnigan asked, running her hand over her face. She looked at Ark in time to see him shake his head. "….They did because I ordered them to. The people rioted. Killed several Marines and several agents. We had to hide. The choppers... The ones we and the last few politicians were going to take… They were taken down by the people."

"What?" Ark asked.

"The helicopters," a Marine started to explain, "were started and ready to go. The pilots panicked and got the damned things into the air. Civilians grabbed a hold of everything they could and the 'copters crashed."

"Christ…. Is this all that's left?" Ark asked.

"All of those that aren't in the Bunker," an agent stated. Suddenly, Leon's fried Jonathon walked up, holding a phone.

"It's a good thing we're not in the Bunker," he said, holding the phone out so everybody could listen. What sounded like screaming met their ears. "Johansson said…he said that the President's lost his mind."

---Harvardville, January 15th---

Ada admitted that getting dressed was proving to be more difficult than necessary. Her stomach, which she'd wrapped in gauze she'd found in a first aid kit under the sink, ached as she moved to tug on the shirt. Ada forced herself to take the pain and tugged the shirt on anyway.

_There… All dressed…_

She didn't like wearing clothes that weren't her own but she hardly cared at the moment. She stepped out of the bathroom, only to hear more arguing. She guessed it was Redfield again. But Leon retreated back to the room before it could escalate anymore.

"You've got to be getting sick and tired of that," Ada said softly to the agent as he walked towards the bed. She noticed he'd shut the door behind him, possibly as a way to block Redfield's annoying voice off.

"I'm used to it," he lied, running a hand through his hair. She smiled at him knowingly and he dropped his gaze to the floor. Ada walked over to the agent as he said, "I'm not. But…she has a right. And as much as I hate to admit it, that's the truth."

"Is it?" Ada asked. "Because she should be happy that I saved your guys' lives. Remember the apartment? The people who attacked us were mercenaries, though I don't know who sent them. I've been protecting you guys just as much as I've been harming you."

"Then you need to tell her that," Leon replied, a small smile on his lips. She shook her head.

They fell into an odd silence and Ada felt her stomach ache a bit. But that was the last of her concern. She sighed and stepped closer to Leon, wrapping her arms around him and resting head on his shoulder. For a moment, he tensed up. But then his arms wrapped around her and he returned the embrace.

She breathed in his scent and felt him breathe in and out. For the first time in a long time, Ada felt at peace. Even though she knew Redfield and possibly Miller and possibly even Rani hated her, she felt like nothing was wrong as she stood in the agent's strong arms.

_Everybody could hate me… They probably already do. But I've got this. And that's all I want._

A/N: How cliché. Sorry, I thought that was the best place to end it. Also, one last thing. I'm not taking Resident Evil 5 into consideration in this story. Until I play the game, it doesn't exist to me.


	13. Chapter 13

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 16th---

Although Ada had only been awake for about 12 or so hours, she hadn't ever seen Leon sleep. In fact, at three o'clock in the morning, when she woke up because of a pain in her side, Leon was standing near the window in the living room, silently examining the outside world. She'd returned to bed without talking to him but she wasn't able to fall asleep.

She climbed out from beneath the blankets and walked into the living room. Leon sat in the armchair near the couch, his head resting against his fist in the typical bored position. She wondered if he even realized it was about five in the morning.

"Do you even know the concept of sleep?" she teased playfully, stepping a little closer to him. He looked at her, only moving his eyes, and a small smile appeared on his lips.

"Do you even know the concept of not sneaking up on people?" he retorted. An innocent smile graced Ada's face and she looked up at the ceiling.

"Not really, no," she said calmly, lowering her eyes to meet his again. He chuckled lightly.

"Then there's my answer," he stated. She cocked her head, her smile widening slightly.

"And what, may I ask, does sleeping have to do with sneaking?" she questioned, walking closer to him. He lifted his head to look at her, his arm dropping as it lost purpose.

"They start with the same letter," he bluntly offered. She laughed softly and shook her head, lowering her gaze to the carpet. There was the joking she wanted.

When she'd first decided that Leon would do well in the Secret Service, she'd had one major fear. She wasn't afraid whether or not Leon could get into the group or whether or not he had the abilities necessary. She'd been afraid that he'd lose the thing that made him Leon. She'd feared that Leon wouldn't joke anymore, that the smiles would disappear, and that the man she'd met in Raccoon would fade with time. And she'd been right.

Ada had watched as Leon started to smile and joke less, as a shell of a man stepped into his place. She'd watched as the government got what they wanted; a weapon. Leon became the machine-like man they wanted. They didn't like the jokes. They didn't like the smiles. They wanted the tool, nothing more. However, every now and then she saw a rare smile on the agent's face. He still used jokes to keep his spirits up. That much was still obvious. He was Leon. Just…different.

"Ada? You okay?" Leon suddenly asked. The concern in his voice startled her. She lifted her eyes to meet his and a sad smile graced her lips. She simply nodded, fearing she would say the wrong thing if she dared speak. "You sure? You kinda…spaced off there for a moment."

"Just thinking, handsome," Ada replied finally. Her throat ached painfully, as did her stomach, but she decided to stick with her throat. "Is there anything to drink in this place?"

He stood and said, "I was actually going to make coffee. You want some?"

She smiled up at him and purred, "I'd love some."

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

"Jesus," Ark breathed. He stood in the second story of the safe house he and his children were now living in and stared out over the streets. The undead slowly plodded around, their decaying bodies acting as nothing more than shells of the virus inside. "There's too many… We'll never get out."

"America's falling," Hunnigan agreed from his side, pushing a cup of hot coffee into his hand. He took a sip and nearly spit the liquid out. It tasted like dirt. "Sorry… It's horrible but it's all we've got."

"It's okay," he replied after forcing himself to swallow. "But…do you really think America's falling?"

"I do… I wish it wasn't but… Ark… We just got reports from Europe. England, France, Spain, and Germany are all showing signs of infection. It's finally happened. The very thing you, Leon, Chris Redfield, and everybody else were trying to stop has happened. The world is collapsing. The T-Virus is winning."

"Chris… Where is he? Or Jill Valentine? Or any of the other survivors besides Leon?" Ark asked, realizing he hadn't heard from any of them in over a year.

"Well, at first Redfield and a bunch of others were trying to stop Tricell. You've heard of the B.S.A.A.? They were working against the companies that were replacing Umbrella. But… When the virus broke out in Harvardville, he came back to see his sister. We lost contact with all of them last month," Hunnigan explained. "Bruce McGivern…he moved to Chine with that woman, Fong Ling. He reported two days ago that China is showing signs. Japan too. Australia, he said, stopped communications three weeks ago."

"Christ… And the other survivors?" he asked.

"They all quit trying to stop the virus after Umbrella's stock fell," Hunnigan replied.

"So, we're doomed. The only ones who could save us are giving up or gone or halfway around the world dealing with their own problems. Leon… We don't even know if he's alive. We're trapped here. The President's lost his mind. …And here I am, telling Lott and Lily that everything's going to be okay," Ark whispered. He felt like breaking something and breaking down at the same time but Hunnigan suddenly reached out and touched his shoulder.

"Leon's alive Ark. And if we have to wait here to meet up with him again, so be it. He'll come back to us. He always does," she said. Ark felt a smile grow on his lips. "And he'll bring Claire Redfield back with him." Ark collapsed to his knees.

---Harvardville, January 16th---

"Didn't think you'd like coffee," Leon admitted as he handed Ada her mug while holding his mug with his other hand. She raised an eyebrow at him and he realized the way his statement could be taken.

"Because I'm Chinese?" she asked. "That's racist, Leon Kennedy. I don't think I can be in the same room as you anymore if you're going to act like that." She stepped away from him, a smile on her lips.

"Ha-ha. No, I meant you don't come off as the type of person who drinks coffee," Leon tried. Ada sighed softly and Leon rolled his eyes.

"Because I'm Chinese. I can't believe you," Ada said darkly, though the smile was still there. "You're racist against Chinese people and yet you flirted with Ingrid Hunnigan."

_Oh hell._

He felt heat building in his face and he asked, "What, are you stalking me or something?"

"No, I just have links to all of the electronic devices handed out through the government," Ada replied, her smile growing wider. He had a bad feeling that she could, even in the dim morning sunlight, see the blush on his face.

"So…you're just spying on me."

"Pretty much. You're interesting, okay?" she teased. But the smile suddenly fell and a look of bitter anger flashed over her face. Leon frowned and watched as she took a sip of the coffee he'd made.

"You okay?" he asked, feeling a familiar concern build inside him. He'd never seen Ada Wong with a look of such fury in her eyes. But the worst thing was, the fury was replaced by sorrow.

"…Something… I'm just thinking about something that was supposed to happen but never did…" she replied finally, her eyes lifting to meet his. He searched her emerald irises for some kind of explanation.

"…What?" he finally asked. He didn't expect an answer but he was too used to trying for answers anyway.

"…In Raccoon… I found…I… I got a sample of William Birkin's tissue…and I used it as a bargaining tool with Wesker to get out of Raccoon. It saved my life but…Wesker's too much of a cocky fool to realize I wasn't bringing it to him. I used another…Mr. Death as they call him. He'd found the actual G-Virus and I took it from him and gave it to Wesker. The thing was…the virus…Well, I filled the sample that I gave Wesker with T-Virus, in an attempt to stop him."

He stared at the woman before him in a befuddled shock but said nothing. Instead, he let her continue:

"It didn't really work. …He got his hands on Sherry Birkin." The name made Leon cringe and his hand clenched tightly around the mug. "So, I gave the tissue sample to a man. You know him well. Graham. He was government. I trusted him to give it to somebody higher up. How do you think he became the President? The government thought he was just that good.

"But I didn't just give it to him. I made a deal with him. He would get me a position in the government and… And he would also get Sherry Birkin and let her return to you." He stared at her in disbelief and found himself unable to form a sentence. Ada continued, her eyes lowering as she said, "He didn't though. Wesker had her and he wasn't giving her up. But Graham… He told me that Sherry escaped from Wesker's clutches. She's out there and…I was just thinking about how…how he went back on his word even after all I've done for him."

"Why… Why did you want to get Sherry back for me?" he asked gently.

"Because I saw how much it hurt you when you had to decide. When you had to choose whether or not to let the 'government' take her. It was Graham's fault she was taken by Wesker in the first place. I thought it was only fair that he was the one to get her back for you," Ada further explained.

She was staring at her cup of cooling coffee and Leon set his mug on the counter they stood next to. He stepped closer to her and gently placed his fingers under her chin, lifting her head so her eyes would meet his. When her green eyes lifted to meet his blue ones, he leaned closer and pressed his lips to hers softly. She tasted faintly of coffee but he didn't mind. Leon heard the mug slide from her hands and smash on the floor, the lukewarm liquid splashing over his boots. Her hands lifted and, gripping his shoulders, she kissed him back.

---Unknown, January 16th---

_"You… You're going to hate me, Sherry," Leon said finally, his words sounding strangled, almost like he was in pain as he spoke._

_"What? Why?" she asked gently, her fingers loosening their grip on his hand. _

_"Because… They offered me a position in the government," he said._

_"Like a secret agent? That's awesome," Sherry said, her voice more excited then she was. She knew Leon wouldn't say she'd hate him because he was going to become a secret agent. There was more to what he wanted to say._

_"And because… Because I wouldn't have the time, or ability, to take care of you…the government offered to protect you," he continued. Sherry wanted to cry. She truly did. But she stared up at him steadily. It wasn't like that meant they couldn't keep in contact._

_"That's not so bad. I could still call you. Just to ask you for government secrets," Sherry teased. When Leon didn't smile, her happiness vanished and a solemn look fell upon her face._

_"I wouldn't… I wouldn't be allowed to contact you… I'd… We'd never see each other again."_

_"Oh."_

"Hey! Is somebody up there?!" somebody shouted, tearing the teen from her dream. She bolted slightly, her right hand clenching the Desert Eagle she'd had in her hand all night.

She was in Harvardville. She knew that much. And she'd found an empty semi with trailer she'd decided to use as her bed. Instincts told her to keep away from the ground in case zombies found her again. Who was…

"Leave the hobos alone, Jonas," somebody barked furiously.

The teen lifted herself into a crouch, her steely eyes narrowing. In her crouch, she moved backwards until her boot hit nothing but air. She extended her leg slightly until it was pressed to a rung on the ladder that was on the trailer of the semi. She continued moving backwards, silently climbing off the back of the truck. The second her boots his the ground she broke into a sprint.

Now to find Leon.

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

According to the doctor that they had in the Bunker, Downing would never walk again. The British man felt an unknown emotion, fury and hatred, build inside of him. The President had lost his mind and such a thing had cost him, a somewhat innocent man, his leg.

"Frederic," the First Lady suddenly said, startling Downing from his bitter thoughts. He lay reclined on a 'bed' of chairs that had been set up for him. "Here's some water. I thought you might be thirsty."

"Considering what your husband did to me, thirst is the last thing on my mind," Downing grumbled, taking the plastic cup of water she'd offered him. His leg was mostly numb, thanks to the doctor's stash of morphine, but he could see fresh blood appearing on the bandage that had been wrapped around his knee.

"…I know you'll never think of us fairly because of what David did… But understand this," she started.

"He's insane?" Downing snapped, interrupting the woman. Her eyes darkened bitterly when he noticed Ashley walk up behind her.

"You know," Ashley started, her brown-gold eyes narrowing with anger. "I wish that Leon's friend had killed you when she shot you."

---Harvardville, January 16th---

She didn't want to release Leon when he started kissing her. She wanted the kiss to last forever. And as she let her right hand entangle itself in his hair, she thought that might happen. But she heard the door that led to Claire and Angela's room open and they broke apart. They stared at one another for a moment before completely breaking apart. He ran a hand through his hair to make it look less messy.

Angela stepped into view, her hair down and falling into her face. Ada noticed the suspicion on her face. "I heard something break. What happened?"

"The mug slipped from my hand," Ada lied, her green eyes dropping to look at the mess she'd made. She hadn't even noticed the liquid touch her socks but the once white fabric was sticky with the light brown liquid. Leon's boots glistened in the morning light and she wanted to laugh.

"You're okay though, right?" she asked, looking at Leon. The agent nodded and Ada knelt to start cleaning up. "Well, I'll get some towels," Angela said before walking off. Leon might've nodded but Ada only noticed him suddenly kneel next to her and gently grab her wrist.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I've dealt with worse than a broken cup," Ada said softly. She grabbed a piece of the mug and Leon did the same.

---Unknown, January 16th---

"Zombies?" the elderly woman asked.

"That's what I said," the teenager replied. "The ones who survived the Harvardville incident. Do you know if they're hear?"

"Um… My sister said something about a man carrying a hurt woman into the hotel down the street. Maybe that's them. But child…do you really think the zombies are going to come here?" the woman asked.

The girl looked at her and softly said, "That's why I'm going to try and find them. I'm hoping they'll have some ideas as to what to do in case the zombies are coming.

The teenager walked past her and towards the hotel.

_Leon…Will you remember me? Please… Please remember me._

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

"Lott?" Lily asked softly. He looked at his younger sister. "You remember when we first met Ark? How we didn't trust or like him."

"Yeah. Why?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head and flinched at the oily hair his hand touched. At 21 years old, Lott cared about his looks. Not like some guys but he cared enough to try to keep his hair clean. Unfortunately, he'd gone days without a shower and he doubted he'd be taking one any time soon.

"Just thinking about how life has changed. …Why didn't you take Ark's last name when he adopted us?" she questioned.

"Just wanted to let mom and dad have some lasting importance in my life," Lott lied. In reality, he just didn't like Ark enough to do such a thing.

---

Hunnigan was a strong woman. She was independent, smart, quick, and calm. But now she was afraid. For days her hands had been shaking and she'd been unable to write or type anything properly. She wasn't able to think clearly. Her eyes seemed fogged over most of the times, almost like she was sick.

_And I am sick. I know I am. But why is it taking so long?_

Her fingers gripped the small handgun the Marine had given her. She didn't really like guns that much but she knew that in a world full of zombies, she had to carry one. Especially now.

_The T-Virus can be airborne for about two hours after release. If it was released in D.C. and I got it because of the airborne…why haven't I changed?_

She'd asked the doctor they had with them that question. He'd been unable to answer her. He'd just said that if she felt like she was changing, she wouldn't want to take the chance.

Hunnigan was sitting upstairs, her eyes focused on the outside world. She'd loved working in the government. Corrupt or not, it was an exhilarating job. But now it all had to end. She sighed softly and lifted the gun. Pressing the muzzle to the side of her head, Ingrid Hunnigan closed her eyes. A gnawing hunger filled her and she could smell the fresh meat that traversed the safe house.

_Good-bye everybody… Mom, Dad, I'm coming._

She pulled the trigger.

---

Lott heard the gunshot and froze. He remembered that woman, Hunnigan or something like that, going upstairs. Nobody moved, nobody bothered going upstairs. It was hard enough seeing zombies. But seeing somebody's brains splattered all over the wall was something nobody wanted.

He sighed and lowered his gaze to the ground.

_And now is when everybody starts blowing their brains out…_

---Harvardville, January 16th---

Claire walked down the stairs quietly, holding the three towels close to her body. She planned on dropping them off at the dry cleaners before heading off to a fast good restaurant to buy breakfast for everybody.

She trotted out the front door and nearly smashed into somebody. The woman, a teenager, moved out of the way at the last second.

"Shit, I'm sorry," Claire apologized. The teenager, her long golden blonde hair tied back in a loose ponytail, kept her head low.

"It's okay," she said softly. Claire offered her a smile but the teen walked off before Claire could ask if she was okay.

"How odd…" the redhead mumbled before walking off.

---Unknown, January 16th---

She found the room and stood in front of the door. Her heart thundered in her chest. It was bad enough seeing the woman she'd pretty much hated through the years but if the old woman was right, it was possible Leon was with others.

_"You're braver than I am Sherry."_

_"No I'm not…"_

_"Yeah… You are. You're a girl. A child. You handled Raccoon better than I ever could. You're braver than me."_

She swallowed thickly before lifting her hand and rapping her fist on the door three times.

A/N: Sorry for no update yesterday. I went to visit my grandma, who is doing better for those of you who know what happened to her, and I kinda got sick when I got home.


	14. Chapter 14

The Assassin's Bullet

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

"We're just going to throw her out there to the zombies?" Ark asked, watching as the Marines wrapped Hunnigan's cooling body in a sheet. An agent, whom he didn't recognize, nodded simply.

"We can't have bodies in here Ark… And it's for several reasons. One, if she was infected then we can't take the chance that somebody else will be infected by being close to her body. Two, we don't need a corpse stinking this place up. And three…we all know what happens to people when they get hungry… We don't need cannibalism," the agent said softly.

The Marines lifted up the already bloody sheet and started down the stairs. They were going to throw her into the crowd of zombies. The only good thing was the fact that the undead would leave her alone. They didn't eat what was already dead.

"I know," Ark replied, shaking his head. "But…nobody deserves to be thrown to the zombies, alive _or _dead."

"Yeah…that much I can agree with you on," the agent replied sadly.

---Unknown, January 16th---

_I'm a coward. I'm a coward. I'm a coward._

Her mantra hadn't stopped since she'd attempted to speak to Leon those hours ago. She'd been there, at the door, but the second she'd heard the voices on the other side she'd panicked and escaped. She regretted ever entering Harvardville.

She sat in the dead center of the Dome, her blonde hair falling into her face and acting like a mask. The darkness of the empty building was eerie to say the least but she'd long ago lost her fear of the dark. Raccoon City had seen to that. Then again, Raccoon had annihilated a lot of her fears.

_If Leon saw me right now…he'd call me a coward and I'd agree…_

She ran her hands over her face and imagined that the monster that her father had transformed into was reaching out to grab her. She froze. She hadn't pictured her father in years. Why all of a sudden?

Her steel-blue eyes lifted until she saw a shadowed area about five meters away from her. She sucked in large breath and stood, her right hand grabbing the Desert Eagle on her hip and pulling it from its holster as she walked. To her astonishment, and horror, the shadow turned out to not be a shadow but instead a monstrous hole in the steel floor.

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

"Do you know what a Crimson Head is?" Ark asked the Marines as they aimed their M4s into the darkness of the outside world. It was overcast out and without the sun Washington D.C. was a dark, dull grey-black color. Every now and then, one could see a flash of light in the far off distance. Thunderheads were moving in.

"No," a young Marine said, glancing back at the detective.

"The virus mutates. All viruses do. Well…sometimes…it mutates in zombies. Now, I can't explain this exactly since I'm no scientist…but…if the virus mutates in the zombies they turn red and they grow claws and they get vicious and fast. You've seen the outcome. Only a glimpse of one though."

"What do you mean?" the Marine asked.

"Remember that creature you guys were describing? The thing that looked like its head was a brain? That's a licker. The final mutation of the T-Virus in a human. They're nasty beasts," Ark explained.

"They invincible?" a burly Marine asked. Ark shook his head. "Then there's nothing to worry about."

---

Lily was eight years old when she'd survived Sheena Island. She'd grown up with nightmares and paranoia that, though she didn't realize it, was shared by another child only a few years older than her. However, she'd stayed strong. She'd gone through the years acting like a normal young girl. But seeing the zombies was taking it's toll on her. And she knew it.

"Lott," she mumbled, grabbing her sibling's hand. He looked over at her, his eyes dull and empty. Lott somehow managed to act like nothing was going on outside. He acted like everything was okay. "Are we going to die?"

"How should I know? Why don't you go ask Ark? I'm not Ark. I don't know anything about what's going on, Lily. You know that as much as I do," Lott replied bitterly. She stared at him in confusion for a moment longer before turning away from him.

Lily released her brother's hand and sat down at the window. She wondered what it was like to be dead. She had a feeling that Hunnigan hadn't been that upset when she'd killed herself.

---Harvardville, January 16th---

She snapped the clip into the gun and pulled the slide back to chamber a round. The sound of the slide snapping into place made the deadly woman smile faintly. Guns were the one thing on the planet that she didn't fear. They were possibly mankind's deadliest creation but they were also extremely fascinating. Ever since her childhood, she'd been entranced with guns. Especially handguns.

The door leading to the room opened and Leon stepped in silently. Ada lifted her eyes to meet his and noticed the exhaustion he was trying, unsuccessfully, to hide. She gently slid the gun underneath her pillow and stood to talk to him.

"You need to sleep," Ada said immediately. After a brief moment of shock, Leon shook his head silently and Ada frowned darkly. "Leon… How much sleep have you been getting? You can't keep running off of no sleep at all."

"I'm not running off of no sleep. I just don't sleep that much," he argued, looking at her with tired eyes. Ada wanted to grab him and force him to lie down but she knew that when it came to brute strength, Leon had her beat. Not to mention, she knew that would also come off as, very likely, her controlling him.

"Leon…you need to sleep. Just take a short rest at the very least," she said, shaking her head. Her raven hair fell into her eyes and she reached up to brush it away.

"I don't need to sleep," he said stubbornly. She shook her head at his attitude and her hair fell into her face again. This time, she didn't bother with brushing it away.

"You do need to sleep and you know it as much as I do. Why do you have to be so stubborn? Why can't you just-"

"Because I can't sleep, okay?" Leon finally snapped, interrupting her. Ada felt herself flinch at the sudden tone he took but she didn't care. What did he mean?

"What? Why can't you sleep?" she asked, staring up at him.

"Because I never sleep. Last time I got a full night's sleep was before Raccoon City. And that was because I was wasted drunk. Ada, I _can't_ sleep. That's why I'm like this. I used to take drugs but they didn't work. I gave up," he said finally, his gaze lowering to the floor. Ada felt shock ripple through her, her green eyes following his gaze to focus on the floor.

"It's me…isn't it?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Leon didn't reply but he didn't need to. His silence was enough. She lifted her eyes to look at him and stepped closer. She rested her hands on either side of his face and made him look into her eyes. "I'm sorry…"

"What for?" he asked, his cerulean eyes focusing on her emerald ones. "It's not your fault I can't get over that."

"…It's my fault any of that happened," she mumbled. "Had I just not bothered you…had I just left you alone-"

He cut her off by kissing her. His hands rested on her waist and it was almost a replica of the kiss they'd shared that morning. She was startled, sure, but she didn't mind. She pressed closer to him before they pulled apart. With their eyes closed, they rested their foreheads together.

"If you hadn't shot at me, I would've died in that city, Ada," Leon remarked softly, his breath warm against her lips. She moved slightly and kissed him again. When they pulled apart this time. They looked at one another before she tugged him slightly towards the bed.

If he wouldn't sleep, she would make him at least lie down.

---Unknown, January 16th---

She sprinted towards the hotel, her boots thudding loudly against the concrete as she ran down the sidewalk. People looked at her but nobody said anything. She guessed a person running wasn't that rare of a sight anymore. She made it into the hotel and sprinted up the stairs, her heavy feet only slightly slowing her down. She continued running down the hall, her endurance holding strong even as her breath became rough and uneven.

The teenager practically slammed into the door but she managed to stop herself just in time. She pressed her hands to the door, her chest heaving violently as she tried to gather her breath. She feared seeing Leon again. Seven years was a long time. But she had to tell him that the weapon was alive. That it hadn't died. That the G-Virus was free.

She rapped her fist on the door three times, again, and stepped back. She tried to fix her hair, which had gone haywire with how fast she'd been running, but voices met her ears before she could bother.

"I swear if it's the same invisible person from earlier," a muffled voice grumbled before the door opened. The teenager felt her hands shaking at her side. The woman who answered was what seemed to be blonde with dark blue eyes. Upon seeing the teen, her eyes widened and she asked, "Um…may I help you?"

"I need to speak to Leon… Tell him… Tell him Sherry Birkin needs to talk to him," the teen replied.

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

Ashley stared at her father, who was messing with his tie, and felt a silent depression creeping through her. It had been hard enough finding out that her father had been happier to see that damned bug than her but watching her father lose his mind was taking its toll on her.

"Daddy?" Ashley whispered softly.

"Hey sweetie," Graham said pleasantly enough. "How's life going for you?"

"…Daddy…do you know what's going on?" she questioned, her voice still a whisper. He gave her a confused look. "Like…do you remember what's happening to America at the moment?"

"Nope," Graham replied. "Never was my job to worry about this country, hon. That was everybody else's problem. I was just supposed to look like the man in control. Don't know why they did that to me. Other president's had power. Not me though. Nope, not Graham."

"Ashley, leave him alone," her mother suddenly ordered.

"I'd like to spend time with Ashley too, you know," Graham suddenly said, his eyes flickering up to stare into his wife's eyes. Ashley looked back at her mother, who stared at her husband impassively. "She's my daughter after all."

Ashley's mother suddenly hissed, "She's not your daughter anymore, David." And with that, she grabbed Ashley's arm and pulled her away.

---Harvardville, January 16th---

Leon knew what Ada was trying to do but he didn't feel like trying to fight her off. He simply let her tug him to the bed and he noticed when the back of her legs hit the bed. She kissed him again, her hands holding onto his face as he wrapped his arms around her. His hands, instead of resting on her waist, ended up resting on the small of her back.

When they pulled apart, she looked like she was about to say something when somebody knocked at the door. Leon cringed and looked over at the door. He didn't feel like speaking and hoped that whoever it was would just talk.

"Um…there's this…girl…who says she wants to talk to you," Angela explained without waiting for Leon to speak first, almost like she'd read his mind. He frowned and gently released Ada. She looked up at him, her intelligent eyes glittering with confusion but he didn't have an answer.

Together, they walked over to the door and he opened it, letting the Eurasian beauty exit before him. She walked over towards the front door and stopped, the shock in her eyes making Leon think that something was wrong. He felt his hand fall to his side, where his USP rested in its holster, and he walked over to her side.

The girl stood outside, her face lacking any major emotions but her slouched body showing signs of fatigue and stress. She was breathing heavily and her pale eyes glittered. But she looked up at the agent and shock found its way onto her youthful face before what looked like shyness replaced it.

As he looked at her, Leon froze. Those eyes were an all too familiar steel-blue. And her hair was a familiar golden blonde. She was familiar because he knew her. He'd tried to protect her years ago. And he'd considered her one of the only people who continuously gave him a reason to fight for the good of mankind.

_No way… _

"Sherry?"

A/N: I know, it's short. But I wanted it to be short. I want the chapters to all be different lengths and this one worked like this.


	15. Chapter 15

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 16th---

He looked different. His hair was a lighter blond than it had been in Raccoon and he'd bulked up some. Not enough to make him actually what she could consider a body builder but he had muscle on him. He was no longer the rookie she'd taken to in Raccoon.

"Sherry?" he asked, his eyes more than confused. She felt a weak smile form on her lips. That was the first time anybody had called her by her name in a long time. Wesker had always called her Miss Birkin. Everybody else had called her Devil girl, after the vaccine that made her immune to the viruses that now plagued America.

"So, you two know each other… How?" the woman who'd answered the door questioned. Sherry let her eyes move from Leon, to the assassin, to the woman and a silent anger started to build within her.

Leon didn't answer so Sherry forced herself to speak in return. "Um… Can I… Can I talk to you out here?" she questioned, looking at the agent again. He, almost instantly, walked past the other two women and joined her in the hallway. The assassin stepped forward and shut the door, leaving the girl alone with the man.

"You're okay…" he mumbled. She smiled, another weak one, and nodded her head.

"You didn't think those morons would actually hurt me, did you?" she teased, though her voice came out strangled.

She hadn't seen this man in years. They'd been torn apart because of the very thing they'd both survived. And she was suddenly remembering all of those years, sitting in her room and stewing in the hatred that had been born from being abandoned by Claire Redfield. She'd never blamed Leon. He'd not asked to take care of her and yet he'd willingly done just that.

She suddenly moved forward and stepped into his arms, tears spilling from her eyes for the first time in years. Leon immediately hugged her back, reminding her what it felt like to be safe. She didn't have to worry about Wesker or the companies being born from Umbrella's collapse when she had Leon again.

---

"Who was at the door?" Claire asked, walking into the living room with Rani, who was about a foot away from her side. She was holding a glass that she'd been drinking from and Rani was unable to take her hand because of it. Angela looked at her before staring at the assassin again, who just watched them both impassively.

"Some kid who wanted to talk to Leon," Angela explained. Claire cocked her head in confusion but none of them spoke. She couldn't hear voices so she guessed that either the wood door was too thick of Leon and the girl were too quiet.

"Some kid?" Claire asked.

"Blonde, blue eyes, teenager. Leon said her name… What was it…? …Sherry…I think," Angela said, almost glancing at the assassin for help. Claire's face pale incredibly.

---

"I'm sorry," he breathed as he hugged her to his chest. The young girl didn't respond, her shoulders shaking with the silent sobs that racked her small form. He knew that she was embarrassed by her breakdown but he doubted she cared at the moment. "I'm so sorry…"

"It wasn't your fault, Leon," Sherry finally choked out, her sobs slowing incredibly. He noticed that she gripped at his T-shirt weakly, almost as if she feared he was going to step away from her and exit her life for another seven years. "It wasn't… I don't blame you… I never blamed you," she mumbled.

They stayed like that for another few minutes before she finally released her grip on his shirt and stepped out of his embrace. Quickly, the teen wiped at her eyes and the small girl he'd recognized vanished, replaced by somebody eerily similar to the Eurasian beauty within the hotel room he'd been living in.

"I came here…looking for you and…this really was just going to be a social visit Leon but…"

"It's not anymore?" he asked as she trailed off. A sad ghost of a smile graced the young woman's lips. "What's going on, kiddo?"

"Nineteen years old and you still call me that," she mumbled. "And yes, I know. You're older than me so you have the right. I don't care." He grinned but as the business-like Sherry returned, his grin faded. "You survived the Harvardville incident," she stated swiftly. He nodded and she said, "And you fought the monster in the Dome." He nodded again and suddenly panic struck with a fury.

_Sherry wouldn't act like this if it wasn't something bad…_

"It's alive, Leon," she whispered.

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

Two other people had committed suicide within an hour. The Marines had started locking the guns up in the basement so nobody else could kill themselves but Lott had watched earlier as a man had climbed out of the house through the upstairs window and throw himself into the zombies surrounding Hunnigan's body. He'd heard the sickening squelching noises as the flat teeth of the zombies ripped off hunks of tender flesh from the man.

"Why do they keep killing themselves?" a young woman at his side asked. Her blonde hair was kept up in two small pigtails on either side of her head. She had a piercing in her nose, three in her bottom lip, one in her eyebrow, and at least ten or so in her ears. He'd found himself wondering how she went by magnets with all that metal in her face.

"Because people are losing their minds," Ark bluntly replied. "Hunnigan was first. Everybody's following. …What the hell is your name, anyway?"

She shot him a dirty look but said, "I'm Vivian. I worked for Terra-Save," she replied, offering him her hand. Her finger nails were painted a bright neon green that Ark thought would burn his eyes out if he didn't look away.

"You? You're kinda young, aren't you?" Lott asked, taking her hand and releasing it almost immediately.

"I'm 24. How old do I have to be to join them and their 'just' cause?" she asked, raising the eyebrow with the piercing in it.

"I didn't think you were that old, honestly," he stated in return. She cocked her head at him curiously, her gaudy jewelry clinking loudly. "Most adults don't run around wearing that…" he explained, waving a hand at her miniskirt, pink tights, and rainbow colored top.

"You act like you're still a kid," Vivian remarked, ignoring his comment on her clothes. "You have to at least be in your early twenties."

"I'm 21 but that hardly makes me an adult. I feel like a kid more than I do an adult. Guess Sheena made that happen to me. …And no, Sheena is not a who. It's a what."

"_What _is Sheena, then?" Vivian questioned, a sly smile finding its way onto her face. It was the first smile Lott had seen in a long time.

"You're Terra-Save and you haven't heard about Sheena Island?" he asked bitterly. "Oh, that's right. It's all about Raccoon City. Nobody cares about Sheena or Rockfort or any of the other outbreaks around the world."

"Well, the other outbreaks didn't have a nuclear bomb dropped on them," Vivian pointed out with a shrug. Her smile didn't disappear though. "Say, I never got you name."

"Lott."

"Nice to meet you Lott. When we get out of this shit hole, what do you say about getting something to eat?"

Lott gave her a befuddled look but a smile, one of his rare smiles, answered the woman's question.

---

"Ark, we need to send out parties to find food for this place," Jonathon said, walking up to the dark haired man's side. Ark glanced over at the other agent and frowned.

He didn't know Jonathon well. He'd only met the agent when Leon had questioned him about a bio-terror incident he, Ark, had covered in Canada. Jonathon had been with Leon at the time. But he remembered one thing about the agent. He was brash. He liked doing things off the top of his head, no matter the consequences.

"We can't. Not yet. We have enough food for the night. Let's wait until tomorrow," Ark argued. The Marine CO, Gerry, nodded his head silently. One thing he and Ark could agree on was the fact that they didn't need more casualties.

"Yeah, we have enough for the night. But… The thing is… The people are starting to panic," Jonathon said. "And we need something to calm their nerves. Sleeping is not doing that. Reading, listening to the radio, talking isn't doing it. We need to get the one thing that can take anybody's mind off of the shit going down outside. Food."

Ark felt his frown deepen. He knew the agent was right. The people were starting to panic and one thing they couldn't have was panic breaking loose. Gerry stepped forward and somberly said, "I'll take three of my men out in an hour. We'll get the food."

---Harvardville, January 16th---

The blonde teen was obviously self conscious and Ada felt slight pride towards Leon as he stood steadily by Sherry's side. Claire had tried to question the teen but Leon had said that something more important had to be dealt with first. Ada had a bad feeling about that.

"Okay… What's going on?" Angela finally asked. "Who are you?"

"My name's Sherry Birkin. I'm a survivor of the Raccoon City incident. And… And I came here to warn Leon about… The…the thing in the Dome…is alive," the teenager explained steadily. Ada noticed the look of horror and hatred that instantly found its way onto Angela's face. Sherry stood steady though.

"How?" the raven haired woman finally asked. Leon looked at her, obviously appreciating her action. She smiled slightly at him.

"The G-Virus…is…basically invincible… Throughout the years when I was in Wesker's base I dealt with the G-Virus, acting like I was following in my father's footsteps. I discovered a horrifying fact… The G-Virus…my father…wasn't killed by the train exploding," Sherry said, looking at Leon. The agent's eyes darkened slightly. "He was killed by the nuclear bomb that struck Raccoon the following day."

"But why would the one in the Dome survive?" Leon asked. "The drop…the explosion… The combined trauma, wouldn't it annihilate the virus?"

"Leon… I used sulfuric acid on a rat infected with the G-Virus. I dunked its head in a beaker of acid. It survived. It got worse. I ended up having to give it to Wesker to get rid of the damn thing. Why do you think he's not gone after the G? It's _too _strong. Even Wesker knows when to not use something," Sherry said softly. She cast Rani an apologetic look but Ada noticed that the small girl didn't seem to care.

"That's ridiculous. If the monster survived the train explosion, why didn't it attack us?" Claire snapped suddenly. Ada shot the redhead a dark look but Sherry simply ignored the tone Claire had taken.

"The virus, though practically invincible, does have to go into a state of hibernation to heal the body that is acting as its host. The G-Virus in my father acted dead. Had the bomb not struck Raccoon, he would've reawaken sometime during October and caused all kinds of hell," the teen explained.

"How do you know this? I mean…you said your father…" Angela started, her voice trailing off slowly.

"He created the virus and spending about six years alone led me to studying it. I know all there is to know about it," she explained.

"So…how do we defeat it?" the other woman asked. Sherry looked at her silently before glancing back at Leon.

"Super special secret agent stuff?" Sherry asked with a nervous smile.

---Washington D.C., January 16th---

"You think London Bridge has fallen again now that the T-Virus is everywhere?" Graham asked, staring at Downing. The British man was extremely pale and his eyes widened as he realized Graham was speaking to him. The President guessed the ex-WilPharma employee didn't like being shot in the knee.

"What in the world are you talking about?" Downing asked, his accented voice squeaking slightly. The President coughed, which was really a laugh, and shrugged at him.

"Just wondering," he said. They thought he was nuts. Well, it was possible that he was nuts. But he wasn't letting that stop him. He was still thinking up ways to save the country he'd tried to protect for going on two years. "You think I was a good president, Downing?"

"No," the silver haired man replied.

"Well, you were a shoddy thief. You know, had Kennedy and those two women not approached you, my assassin would've taken the top of your head of with her Barrett .50 caliber sniper rifle. You should see her with that thing. I've never seen anybody half as good as her. She's impressive. Guess that's why I always liked her. And I always trusted her because, as she said, she had no reason to lie to me. So, she wasn't lying," Graham droned, his voice taking a very monotone sound towards the end of his explanation.

"Dad, please leave him alone," Ashley said as she walked up. Her mother hadn't allowed the young woman near her father for several hours but it wasn't working. Ashley was still her father's daughter. "We're supposed to lock you up anyway."

"Take me away, Daughter," Graham said, extending his closed fists to her. She smiled slightly and took a hold of one of his hands and led him off.

_Now…how to contact Ada and Leon…_

---Harvardville, January 16th---

"What did she mean out there?" Ada asked as the group broke up to go to sleep. He and Ada stood in her room and Sherry planned on sleeping on the couch in the living room. "Special agent stuff?"

"When I first told Sherry that I was joining the government, she had this lasting joke that I would have…powers I guess you could say. Government powers. It was a joke," he replied gently.

"An inside joke? Cute," she remarked playfully. He smiled faintly but couldn't keep the smile on his face. It dropped and he lowered his gaze to the floor. Ada was in front of him in moments. "What now?"

"…Sherry… How can she not blame me?" he asked, lifting his head to meet her eyes. Ada smiled faintly.

"You took care of her. You did everything you could. You didn't walk away from her after you three escaped Raccoon City. She sees you as the person who tried to defend her. She sees Redfield as the person who abandoned you both," Ada said simply.

He lowered his gaze again and Ada stepped closer to him, wrapping her arms around him in a gently embrace. He returned the favor, wrapping his arms around her and resting his head against hers. Leon doubted he could ever get enough of holding her.

---

"Here's our spare pillows," Rani said gently, handing Sherry four pillows. The teen took them and placed them on the couch.

"Thanks…." she said before noticing that Rani wasn't leaving. "What?"

"You don't like Claire very much, do you?" the young girl asked. Sherry shook her head. "Why?"

"Something she did to me a long time ago that I can't get over. Personal reasons," Sherry said. "…I have a question for you. Is something going on between them?" she asked, motioning towards Leon's room. She'd noticed the looks shared between them while she was speaking.

"I think so," Rani said. "But don't tell anybody that!"

"Cross my heart and hope to die," Sherry said, making the corresponding movements as she spoke. Rani smiled and returned to her room. Sherry lay down on the couch, propping her booted feet on the arm of the chair.

_The assassin and Leon, huh? Cute. Wait… Her name…it's like… Ida… I know it ends in d-a… Ada? Yeah, that's it. Wait... Like Leon's Ada from Raccoon?_

A/: I didn't mean for this one to end up being short. The only reason it did is because my computer wouldn't work this morning and I got less writing done. So, I apologize.


	16. Chapter 16

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 17th---

The scent of coffee was new to Sherry. She'd never woken up and smelled the warm smell of cooking coffee. Hell, she hadn't ever tasted coffee before either. She'd run through her years as a so-called scientist on caffeine from sodas and other forms of sugar. But the sent of coffee dragged her from her makeshift bed and made her look to the kitchen.

Leon and Ada stood side-by-side, softly conversing. The teen noticed that, although they weren't touching, their shoulders were close enough together that even the slightest shift in either one of them would end up in physical contact. She noticed that Ada, who was well known for being the Ice Queen, was smiling and looking at Leon with something Sherry compared to adoration. The teen smiled and looked at the floor.

She'd guessed right. Throughout the night she'd found herself thinking about Leon and his female friend. Were they friends or something more? Sherry guessed that, because of the looks they'd shared, they were much more than friends. But she'd also guessed that they hadn't admitted that to each other. And if they had indeed met in Raccoon City, Sherry had no doubt that Leon loved the woman. Because he'd definitely felt something for the Ada she'd asked about in the airport those years ago.

"Look, somebody else is finally awake," Leon teased. Sherry realized he'd noticed her staring at the feet and she stood.

"I'm not lazy, thank you very much," she replied to him as she walked over to the duo. Ada smiled faintly and Leon glanced at her.

"You're going to say I'm lazy, aren't you?" he asked. The Eurasian woman turned to him again, her eyes bewildered and Sherry wanted to laugh. "Don't pull that with me. I'm not that stupid, thank you very much."

"I don't know Leon…" Sherry said softly. The agent shot her a dirty look and Sherry grinned. She couldn't remember the last time she'd smiled and had fun with somebody. Most, if not all, of the people she knew were mindless drones who couldn't hold an intelligent conversation if their life depended on it.

"You're siding with her?" the blond man laughed. Sherry shrugged and Ada smiled wider.

"Leon, we're women. Of course we stick together," the assassin said playfully. Leon shook his head and looked away from them. "Oh, now you're not going to talk to us?" Ada asked, feigning a hurt expression.

"Well, if that's the case then we should talk about him behind his back," Sherry said pleasantly. Ada smiled and nodded. Leon, however, looked less than amused but neither of them were about to let that stop them. "So, tell me, do you two always wake up so early?" the teen questioned.

"Well, oddball there doesn't sleep and I usually wake up extremely early," Ada explained, waving a hand at Leon as if he was nothing more than a statue. Leon gave them both bitter looks but Sherry and Ada continued to ignore him.

Sherry was about to speak to the woman when she heard the door down the hall open and the woman who'd answered the door the day before walked out. She noticed that Leon, Ada, and Sherry were watching her but she simply stepped into the kitchen and started to fix herself a cup of coffee.

_What's her name? …Oh great… I don't think I got her name ever… Oops… Then again, Ada never gave me her name… Wonder if everybody's trying to keep their identities secret._

The conversation disappeared and Sherry noticed that with the conversation, Leon and Ada seemed to become distant from one another. The teen knew that while he'd been bugged by the fact they were talking about him, he'd enjoyed it as well. It was good old fun. But when the woman had walked in, the fun had been sucked from the room.

_Hm…_

---Washington D.C., January 17th---

Ark watched as the Marines piled boards and furniture in front of the windows, their guns slung over their shoulders and swinging with every move. Gerry placed his hand on a soldier's shoulder as he walked by to join Ark.

"We couldn't find anything…except a family," Gerry quietly explained. Ark felt a sense of horror gnawing at his brain but he forced his face to stay neutral. "We gave them the choices to leave or to be shot. We can't take the threat of infection. They…they acted so normally."

"What do you mean?" Ark asked. Had the zombies started retaining memories? Had their dumb threat just become an actual problem?

"Harold over their…noticed that…they carried…a bag with them. We asked them what it was and they said it was their food. We weren't going to take it but the father said that…for our generosity at letting them live, we should take some. I don't trust anybody. Didn't trust them. Pulled something out of the bag… It was… It…"

"Out with it, soldier," Ark growled, though he knew he had no right to boss around the Marine.

"It was a fucking arm. They were eating people. Cannibals, Ark. They were fucking cannibals," Gerry snapped. Several heads turned to look at the angry Marine but Ark didn't really care. The idea of eating another person made him sick to his stomach immediately. He noticed several of the Marines looking queasy.

"Jesus Christ," Ark finally whispered. "…What did… Did you let them go?"

"My team bolted Ark. They wouldn't be near the fuckers any longer. But… I stayed. Shot them. Entire family," Gerry whispered gently, his voice hardly audible. Ark frowned, mentally begging himself to not ask whether or not there were any children in this family.

"You going to be okay?" Ark asked. The last thing they needed was an insane soldier. He was one of the only men who could use a gun, after all.

"I'll be fine. I've dealt with killing before. It's the cannibalism that's bothering me," Gerry replied, lowering his gaze to the floor.

Ark forced himself to not say that there was only going to be more cannibalism as the virus continued to plague the city.

---Harvardville, January 17th---

"So, what's going on between you and Ada?"

Leon froze and turned to face the young woman who was staring at him. Sherry looked a little more imposing then he would've ever thought possible, standing with her hands on her hips and a Desert Eagle clasped to her leg. He couldn't help but compare her to Ada.

"What?" he asked innocently, hoping that his attitude didn't give him away. "How do you even know her name?"

"Well, first of all, I may be young and somewhat still innocent but it's not hard to see that something is between you two. And second of all, Ada Wong is the most well known assassin Umbrella's ever had any association with. Of course I know her name," she replied, giving him the 'I'm a teenager but I know things' look.

"Nothing's between us," he lied stiffly. He knew his lie was obvious and that Sherry noticed that but he hoped she would leave him alone. "And…Ada's not an assassin."

"I know. Well, I mean, she technically is. Just not a genuine assassin. And sure, nothing's between you. Just like my last name isn't Birkin and you're not a blond," Sherry said sarcastically. Leon rolled his eyes.

"Exactly," he said stiffly before walking to his bedroom.

_I need to take a shower…_

---

"You alright, handsome?" she purred. He looked at her, his eyes tired as always. She'd tried to make him sleep the night before, even going so far as to laying with him in bed. But he'd still stayed awake. He really couldn't sleep.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied bitterly. She frowned at him. He was pretty obvious when it came to moods. Sometimes he could hide them really well. Other times they were the most obvious emotions she'd ever seen. Ada didn't honestly mind that though. She liked being able to read him. That just meant she was one step closer to finding the man she'd met and fallen for in Raccoon City.

"Right… And I should believe you why?" she teased. Leon looked at her, his crystal blue eyes weary. She hated seeing him like that. In fact, it sometimes made her regret getting him the job in the first place. But then she'd remember that it wasn't his job that kept him up at night.

She stood from the bed and walked over to him. When she was close enough to him, she reached up and rested her left hand against his face. Almost instantly, they leaned together and pressed kissed, her hand moving up and touching his hair. When she could, she grabbed a hold of a fistful of the ash blond hair and deepened the kiss. His hands gripped her waist, his thumbs finding their ways under the hem of her shirt and rubbing circles of her bare stomach. The bandages that covered the healing bullet wounds were only centimeters away from his hand. But she didn't notice.

They finally pulled away and Ada found herself breathing heavily. They rested their foreheads together and she noticed an odd feeling in her chest. A feeling she'd gotten years ago. Like somebody was squeezing her heart.

"Why can't this be easier?" he whispered suddenly and Ada couldn't reply.

---

"We need to talk," Claire said gently. Sherry looked at the redhead and felt a fire burning in her stomach. She wanted to turn and walk away. She wanted to find Leon. She wanted to hit something. The last thing she wanted to do was to talk to the woman who'd abandoned her.

"Why?" Sherry asked. "So you can give me some shoddy excuse as to why you abandoned me and Leon back in Raccoon?"

"I didn't-"

"Oh, I'm sorry! You're right, you didn't abandon us. You left Leon, a wounded and exhausted and God knew what else, alone by a railroad track with me, a tired and heartbroken young girl. He knew nothing about me, he'd interacted with me maybe twice before and yet he didn't complain. But he sure as hell didn't appreciate it. So, what would you call that? Walking away from a cop and a child and not looking back. Hm… Sounds like you abandoned us," Sherry snarled darkly.

"Leon took care of you! I had to find my brother!" Claire argued.

"Why? Your brother's older, smarter, stronger, and better than you! But no! You couldn't help me and Leon. No, you had to help your brother without a single thought towards us!" Sherry shouted furiously. She knew the others could hear her but she guessed they didn't want to try and intervene with the personal problem.

"Leon-"

"What about him? Yes, after he took care of me I grew to love him. He replaced my father. He replaced my mother. He replaced you. But I hated that! I hated how he had to take care of me! I saw how lost he looked. He didn't know what to do when it came to taking care of a child. And a girl child at that. But no, you left and he had to take care of me. I can't believe he can even look at you. Then again…he doesn't hate you because you didn't promise him," Sherry continued, her voice loud and angry. Tears threatened in her eyes but she would not cry over Claire Redfield.

"Promise?" Claire asked gently.

"You can't even remember," the teen laughed bitterly. "You promised me that you would take care of me! You promised me and you left me! And Leon, the man who'd gone through so much hell, took care of me without a single complaint. He spent more time worrying over me and caring for me than you and my parents combined!" Sherry took a deep breath and stared Claire in the eyes. "We have nothing to talk about. And if you think we do, I don't care. I'm done talking to you."

She walked away, ignoring the pained look in Claire's eyes.

---Washington D.C., January 17th---

"We're going to die down here," Downing said for the umpteenth time that day. Ashley shot him a dirty look but refrained from snapping at him. He was in pain, she had to remember that, but he was also just complaining.

"How? We've got food that will last us until the end of a nuclear winter, Downing. Didn't you know that?" President Graham questioned. He stood at his podium and stared out over the empty chairs where the other politicians would sit if their leader hadn't gone crazy. "We have enough room in here for all of D.C.'s major families and their pets. We're not going to die down here. Unless the virus lasts that long. Then we might die. But who knows? Maybe the virus will die off within the next couple days."

"Wishful thinking," Ashley mumbled. Her father looked at her and she ducked her head away. She didn't want her father to know that she was being extremely pessimistic about what was going on. It wasn't his fault. Or…at least it wasn't _entirely _his fault.

"Isn't all thinking wishful?" her father asked, his eyes never leaving her. Ashley admitted to herself that the staring thing was freaking her out. But she looked back at him anyway. "Aren't all thoughts in some way wishful?"

"Please," Downing groaned. "No more psyche crap."

---

"So, did you hear about what happened to the soldiers?" Vivian asked as Lott joined her. They were in their same spot as yesterday, standing the exact same as they had, and wearing the exact same clothes as the day before.

"Huh-uh," Lott grumbled. He was somewhat miserable because his sister, once so vigorous, hadn't left her bed in nearly two days. All she'd do was lie under her blanket and stay curled up, hardly speaking at all. And since Ark was too busy helping everybody else, the man hadn't noticed that his daughter was starting to lose it.

"Found a family of cannibals," she said softly. "Cannibals even offered the soldiers a piece of somebody. Guess the soldiers ran off. Fuck, I would too."  
"I wouldn't," Lott replied. Not because he was trying to be manly. But because he had nothing to fear from living cannibals. Sure, they could kill and eat you. But you were certain you weren't coming back. "What's the worse they could do? Eat me? I'd much rather deal with cannibals then zombies."

Vivian stared at him for a moment before she nodded and looked at the ground. "Yeah…but cannibals…they'll torture you."

"Torture is just the promise of sweet death coming to get you," Lott replied darkly. The woman at his side simply continued staring at the floor.

---

Lily didn't feel like living anymore. Ark had the people to protect. Lott had a new friend. She had nothing. She had no purpose. She began to wonder if the lack of purpose was a helping hand in Hunnigan's suicide. That and she had no doubt Hunnigan couldn't take the guilt of having a squad of Marines open fire on innocents.

Lily stood from her makeshift bed, really just blankets piled together, and walked over to the nearest window. It had some flimsy boards covering it so infected birds couldn't get in but there was no way in hell it was going to stop a human.

She tore the boards down as quietly as possible and climbed up onto the windowsill, her legs quaking slightly. The drop was about 25 feet and she knew she damn well wouldn't make it. That was just too high a drop and the zombies that shuffled about down there only amplified the promise of death.

Lily started to take a step forward when two hands grabbed her waist.

A/N: Really short, I know. I don't feel so great and I couldn't really focus on the chapter last night or this morning. I apologize.


	17. Chapter 17

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 18th---

Angela could only describe living in the hotel room as tense and uncomfortable. The day before had marked a change in attitude amongst her so-called friends, who all of a sudden became cold and emotionless. Sherry only spoke to Leon. The assassin didn't speak to anybody. Claire snapped every time she spoke. Angela wasn't certain as to what had caused the changes in attitude but she was getting sick and tired of it.

They all sat in the living room, cold food sitting in front of them on the small table. Nobody had eaten anything except Rani, who was now sitting near Sherry and talking to the older girl quietly. None of the adults moved.

"Okay, why do I feel like I'm missing something?" Angela finally asked. Everybody lifted their eyes to look at her and she found herself staring at Leon in response. The agent didn't say anything though his eyes seemed to ask her what she meant. "Everybody's avoiding each other. What's going on?"

"Nothing," Claire lied stiffly. Angela bit back a retort at the redhead and waited. But none of the other adults said anything. Instead, their eyes fell from Angela and focused on the floor.

"Right… Great talk guys," the S.R.T. member grumbled bitterly.

---Washington D.C., January 18th---

Lily had what most of the survivors considered light psychosis. When Gerry had stopped her from tumbling out of the window and onto the pavement below, she'd dropped into a stupor, hardly moving or breathing as Ark tucked her under her blankets. He feared that the once strong girl was losing her mind because of the zombies outside.

Ark had walked the house over about fifty times, trying to keep an eye on everybody at once. Couples cuddled, families whimpered, children stared, and then the soldiers and agents walked. They were all coping in their own ways but Ark was worried about those who weren't coping at all. Such as Lily.

"So, what now?" Jonathon asked as he walked down the stairs. The agent looked exhausted but he'd not stopped watching over the civilians. As long as Ark walked, Jonathon walked. They were going to do everything they could for their people.

"What do you mean?" Ark asked, casting the other man a look. Jonathon stared out over the silent forms of the people.

"We need to leave this house, Ark. You, me, Gerry, we all know it. This place won't stand much longer. Everyday the zombies press in and the cold's getting to be too much for the people. We're running out of food, water, clothes, and our electricity's already gone. We're screwed if we stay here much longer," Jonathon replied, his eyes never leaving the people. Nobody reacted to the agent's bad news. They all knew it. They all knew that there was a high chance that all of their hard work was going to go down the drain soon enough.

"Food… And to think, a simple miscalculation screwed us all," Ark murmured bitterly. Jonathon laughed at his side and Ark looked over at him in shock.

"Sorry… I just think it's funny. All of these tiny factors are fucking us over. We screwed up with the food and with the electricity. We thought the people would be able to keep hold of their sanity longer. We would never win a survival contest," he said, his voice growing gruff. Ark slowly lowered his gaze and stared at his boots.

"Let's just worry about surviving this, okay?" Gerry asked as he walked by. Ark laughed at that.

---

"Downing, it can't be that bad. I simply blew your knee off. Nothing more," Graham said as he walked around the wounded man. Downing's leg was starting to become infected and even the doctor's couldn't help it. Downing was also constantly complaining because of the pain. Graham had failed to tell the doctors that he'd switched out Downing's real pain pills with some stupid sugar things he'd found.

_Were those the pills that they gave me for my heart? I wouldn't be surprised…_

"Are you mad?" Downing squeaked, looking up at Graham. His face was pale, his lips the color of clean white paper, and sweat dribbled down his brow. Graham had no doubt that Downing was in pain. But he didn't honestly care.

_That's what you deserve… You, in a way, helped make America fall. It's only fitting that you suffer the same consequences as the citizens of the country._

"Am I mad? Everybody says I am. What do you think Downing? Am I mad?" Graham asked, stopping by Downing's knee. The silver haired man stared at Graham in horror, his pale skin growing even paler.

"No," Ashley suddenly said. "You're not mad. You just aren't completely there. Because my dad wouldn't shoot a man in the knee because of some assumption. But my dad would still care for the country, even after it hates him."

The President stared at his blonde daughter and instead of reaching out and grabbing Downing's knee like he had planned, he simply nodded and walked away.

_What…What have I become?_

_­_---Harvardville, January 18th---

Ada walked the Dome over, her footsteps the only sound in the oddly shaped building. Her eyes flickered back and forth, examining every corner, every detail of the building. The only things she missed were the specks of dust soaring in the non-existent breeze.

She'd decided to come see for herself. Since Leon's question the other night, she'd found herself trying to hunt for ways to escape from the hotel. She needed to think. She needed to actually get away. She didn't mind being with the agent. But when she was with others, people she didn't completely trust, she had to find a way to escape. And examining the Dome was the best way to do such.

_This way, I get to think about both the G-Virus and Leon and I don't have to worry about anybody questioning me in the meantime._

Leon was a subject she didn't want to tackle. She knew how she felt for the agent and after his question, she guessed he somewhat felt the same. But what exactly was the feeling? She knew that love was supposed to be a great attraction between two people. Love was supposed to lead to marriage and kids and growing old together. And while that sounded fun to the woman in Ada, it sounded horrible to Ada herself. She was an assassin, a woman who walked the edge every day of her life. And although the idea of settling down with Leon gave her a warm feeling, she knew the assassin in her would hate that kind of life.

And the worst part was the fact that she wasn't completely definite of what Leon felt for her. She knew that he was a gentleman in the sense of the word. He didn't kiss a woman he didn't at least feel something for. She knew that about him. But what did he feel, was the question. Did he love her? Did he like her? Did he tolerate her? And if he didn't feel anything like that, was she wrong about who she thought Leon was? Further more, what if he did love her? What if they had feelings for each other and couldn't even think about settling down if they wanted to. With the world falling apart around them, Ada knew that they wouldn't even consider bringing forth a family.

Her boot struck something solid and a loud banging noise echoed through the building, knocking her from her thoughts towards the man. She looked down and realized that she'd come upon a massive hole in the steel ground. The area where the G monster must've come out of. She guessed this was what had told Sherry of the monster's existence.

_No wonder she thought that. This hole…the creature came from below. The hole's at least six feet across… It's alive. Sherry was right._

Now came the worst part. If the monster was still alive and Sherry was correct in that the G-Virus could only be completely destroyed by a nuclear weapon, how were they going to defeat the monster?

---

Leon found himself wandering Harvardville's streets aimlessly, his boots clunking as he practically dragged his feet over the sidewalk. He wanted to be alone, away from the arguments and the anger that filled the hotel room. Away from Angela and her questions. Away from Ada and the confusing feelings he had towards her.

Ada was…frustrating to say the least. She refused to tell anybody her name, no matter how much he asked her to. She refused to open up to him in any way other than what had been said already. She was Ada. He knew he couldn't expect the woman to completely open up to him but…that didn't mean he didn't hope she would.

Leon wasn't even certain what he felt for her. Angela and Ada were proving to be problems he didn't want to deal with. Both of them were beautiful, intelligent, and strong. Ada was a little more of them though, but Leon guessed he was biased since he'd known the Eurasian woman longer. But Angela had that promise of being the average woman. The woman you could go out on dates with. Hold hands with. Ada wasn't. He liked to think she was.

In fact, she'd grabbed his hand in Raccoon after he'd returned from grabbing the key that would make the turn table return to them. She'd grabbed it and asked if he was okay, her shimmering green eyes staring into his. At the time, he'd not acknowledged the touch. But afterwards when he remembered the touch, it almost felt like she was still in front of him, holding his hand and asking if he was okay.

But that was different. That wasn't going on dinner dates and holding hands and walking through parks. That was two people holding onto each other in a horrifying situation. They had been each other's lifelines. That was all.

But wasn't Angela the same thing? They'd acted as lifelines to each other. Sure, Leon hadn't been as afraid in the Dome as he had been in Raccoon. But they'd still basically acted the same way he and Ada had. The only difference was the time length. He'd spent nearly nine hours with Ada. He'd only spent four or five with Angela. Not to mention…he hadn't bonded with Angela like he had Ada. He hadn't taken a bullet for Angela. Angela hadn't sacrificed herself to protect him.

_Stop… You're just going in circles…_

Leon's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a loud noise. It sounded eerily familiar, like a low and furious growl. He felt every muscle in his body tense up and his hand instantly moved to his USP. He wished he'd taken Sherry's Desert Eagle.

He turned to his right and caught a glimpse of something. He thought, at first, that it was a massive eye staring at him. A massive eye that only belonged to creatures created by the deadly G-Virus. But as his logic took over, he knew it was simply his imagination taking over.

That didn't stop him from walking back to the hotel instead of continuing his walk.

---

Sherry sat up late at night, her blonde hair spilling into her face. Leon and Ada had returned a little while ago, both of them looking bitter and bothered. She'd guessed that they'd had their own respective problems. And she had a feeling that Ada had seen what Sherry had seen in the Dome.

"You okay, kiddo?" Leon suddenly asked, his voice gently and kind. She turned to look at him and smirked.

"I'm fine, old man," she replied. Leon smiled back at her but she saw the hidden emotions behind his eyes. "Okay, what's going on?" Sherry finally asked. His smile faded and he gave her a confused look. "Leon, you're pretty obvious. And both you and Ada looked upset when you got home. Something's wrong."

"I just saw something. My mind's over-reactive, kid. You know that," he stated bluntly. She stared at him. He sighed and lowered his gaze. "I thought I saw the monster, okay? Just me freaking out over everything that's happening."

Sherry shook her head silently and said, "I doubt that. You always had one of the clearest minds I've ever met. Even after surviving Raccoon City you could still outthink half of the people on this planet. And yet all of a sudden you're freaking out?"

"A lot more has happened," he responded. "You're back. Ada's a good guy, not to mention the fact that she's my boss. A monster's on the loose. The T-Virus is tearing the world apart. I'd say that's worse than Raccoon."

"And yet you've continued to keep on going. Compared to Raccoon, you're right, all of this is much, much worse. But when you look at it from _our _viewpoints, it's not. We're older. We've accepted what the T-Virus does. Back in Raccoon, it was all new. All fresh. It was ten times worse than what we're encountering now.

"So, you're not freaking out. I know that much about you. You saw something. And that can be good and bad. Good because I'm right. And we know that the creature's out there. And we know it has to be stopped. Bad…because it's out there. And it's going to be pissed and hungry. And it will probably be looking for revenge."

---

"You okay, Angela?" Claire asked, running her hairbrush through her hair. Angela nodded, unable to meet Claire's eyes. "Look, I know we've been acting like a bunch of assholes and all that," Claire continued, glancing at the slumbering Rani. "But…I've got an idea. We'll go to D.C. All of us. Leon probably wants to go home and check on everybody. I'd like to see Ark. I'm certain that we could get ourselves to the President."

"But the news said that D.C.'s horribly infected," Angela pointed out. Claire grinned, showing off her white teeth.

"Looks like we'll have to fight our way through, huh?"

---Washington D.C., January 19th---

"We have to get out of here," Gerry said coldly. "And if that means leaving some of these people behind, so be it."

"Where would we go?" Ark asked bitterly, casting a sour look at the soldier. Gerry met his gaze and held it icily.

"The White House. The Bunker would be our best bet. And think about it. Where better to hide than a place designed to survive a nuclear holocaust?" Gerry continued. Jonathon snorted.

"Sorry, not just anybody can walk into the Bunker and live in there with the most powerful man in the world and his elite bodyguards," the agent remarked. Ark was suddenly reminded of the fact that Jonathon was Secret Service.

"We don't really have another choice," Gerry snarled. Ark lowered his head. Sadly, the soldier was right. They didn't have any other choice. They had to leave the house. It wasn't a safe place any longer. He met Jonathon's gaze and sighed.

"To the White House," he said gently.

---

"So, the White House, huh?" Vivian asked as she and Lott walked down the stairs. Lily was among the many children that were going to march amongst the soldiers to be protected. Lott secretly hated that he was going to be away from his sister.

"Yeah, we're moving up in the world," he chuckled. She grinned, her piercing catching the faint rays of the sun as it pierced through the morning clouds. The somewhat peaceful air, usually only filled with the hungry moans of the zombies, was suddenly interrupted by the roar of automatic gunfire as the Marines tore the zombie crowd apart.

"You think we'll make it?" Vivian asked, her left hand grabbing Lott's and squeezing it weakly. Lott looked down at the contact, startled. He'd rarely been considered dateable by girls when he was in school. And yet here was somebody from Terra-Save, holding his hand.

_Calm down killer._

"I think we will," Lott lied, squeezing her hand back.

---

"This is Secret Agent Michaels. I'm with a large group of civilians, soldiers, and special agents. We're heading towards the White House. If anybody's there, please contact us."

Ashley looked at her father, who stared at the radio quietly. The look on his face was on she recognized pretty well. He was asking himself whether or not he should answer the distress signal or let the survivors go on their own.

"Mr. President," a doctor started. "You can't take the chance of any of them being infected. We shouldn't give them hope that we'll let them in."

President Graham had returned, replacing the odd man that had stepped into her father's shoes. He was questioning himself and Ashley had to pray that he would make the right decision and let the people in.

_Please Dad. Please…._

"I'm still in charge, right?" Graham asked, casting a look over his shoulder. The men stared at him but a few nodded slowly. "Ashley, go ahead and tell them to come to the Bunker. Any and all civilians are welcome."

Ashley smiled and grabbed the handset.

A/N: Ah yes, short and thoughtful. Literally. So, this is the kind of chapter that is created when I write on one of my paranoid days... I go into the deepest depths of my mind and pull out every thought on a subject that I can find. This time, it just happened to be Ada and Leon's huge 'love' thoughts. Sorry if that was boring. But hey, I thought they deserved a chance to question what they felt and all that good stuff.


	18. Chapter 18

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 19th---

"Sherry," the thing roared, it's somewhat human hand reaching out for her. She pressed her small form into the corner as much as possible and cowered before the beast.

She knew it was her father. The strings of hair that were still on his scalp were the same sandy blond as her fathers and the human like face planted between the two hunks of muscle that were his shoulder looked like William Birkin. But whatever remained of her father was gone. It was just a monster now.

"Leave me alone!" she cried finally, pressing herself even more into the corner. The cold metal made her shoulders tremble weakly but she ignored the uncomfortable feeling. She instead turned her thoughts onto someone else.

Where was Claire? The redhead had promised to protect Sherry and yet she was gone.

_She's abandoned me again… Wait… Again?_

Somebody grabbed her shoulder and Sherry was jerked from her fitful sleep. She stared at the person, Leon, with tired eyes. "Thanks," she mumbled to him.

"Nightmares," he mumbled. "I'm one who knows how to deal with those." She smiled weakly at his comment and he walked away. The hotel room was dark, only the faintest rays of sunlight spilled in through the windows. Nobody else was awake. Or if they were, they weren't in the living room.

"Damn… What time is it?" Sherry asked, covering her mouth with her hand in an attempt to muffle a yawn. He glanced over at her.

"About 5:30," he replied.

"And nobody else is awake?" she questioned, standing. Her legs ached from the odd way she'd slept the night before but the rest of her was doing well enough. She walked into the kitchen.

"Nope," he replied, leaning against the counter. She noticed the way he watched the window, as if expecting something to come bursting in with massive claws aimed for his heart. She had a feeling that what he'd seen the night before had prevented him from even closing his eyes longer than a few short seconds.

"Not even Ada?" Sherry asked. Leon shook his head. She stared at him and a bitter silence fell over the hotel room. She noticed he didn't look at her, instead continued staring at the window with his arms folded over his chest. She let her eyes fall away from him and stared at her boots.

_I need to stop sleeping in these things…_

---

Ada couldn't stop thinking about the fact that they were in such terrible danger that even she was worried. She couldn't stop thinking about the gaping hole in the steel floor of the Dome and she couldn't stop thinking about the paranoid look on Leon's face when they met up in front of the hotel. She remembered him holding his gun at his side, his eyes moving between shadows. She'd known something was wrong. She just hadn't said anything.

When she heard the voices, she guessed Sherry was finally awake. Leon had left the room from his constant spot in the chair next to her bed to make coffee at about 3:30 that morning. She'd always been good at telling time when there was nothing to go by. She had a good internal clock or something like that.

_So, now what? We're trapped in a small city without any true knowledge as to what's going on in the outside world. There's a monster out there that can't be stopped by any normal means unless Sherry carries a nuclear bomb on her. We're pretty much screwed._

She hated the feeling of being trapped in the city. She knew that they were safer here than in the outside world but the freelance assassin in her ached to get outside and run about. She ached to rule again. All she needed was a rifle, a knife, a handgun and she was good to go.

Ada shook those thoughts away and rolled over in bed, her raven hair falling into her face and blocking out all of the light coming in through the small window in the bathroom. She wouldn't do that. She wasn't a freelance assassin anymore. She was a government agent working alongside another agent on a very important mission. And that other agent just happened to be the dashing Leon S. Kennedy, the very man who could make her weak in the knees even though she was the deadliest woman in America.

_Of course…that doesn't mean anything now… The zombies pretty much annihilated the point of even having that title._

Somebody knocked on the door suddenly and Ada lifted herself from the bed. "Come in," she mumbled, almost hoping it was Leon. Sherry entered however, her steel-blue eyes filled with emotions Ada didn't like to see. "What's wrong?" Ada asked. The girl's eyes were somewhat panicked.

"…Claire and Angela are planning to go back to D.C. Now, I've done some research since nobody really told me who the monster was. …Curtis Miller, older brother of Angela Miller. If…if she leaves and her brother follows her…we'll have G-mutants covering the country. Leon…I know Leon won't try and stop them. He's too much of a pushover," Sherry breathed, closing the door behind her. She walked over and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Why are they going to D.C.?" Ada asked, reaching for the long sleeved shirt Angela had given her. "And why, if he hasn't attacked anyone in Harvardville, would Curtis spread the G-Virus to the outside world?"

"I don't know why. Maybe they're sick of us. And to answer the other question… The virus…is more likely recognize places…then people. It's likely he realizes this place is his home town and he doesn't want to hurt the people. But his sister…she can be mistaken for nothing more than a breeding tool. …Why did my dad have to make an incestuous virus?"

Ada pulled her shirt on, careful to avoid hitting or stretching her stomach. Sherry, however, noticed the way Ada carefully pulled the shirt on. The blonde gave her a confused look. "I was shot…maybe a week ago… I don't know… But Leon saved me," Ada explained hastily.

"Did somebody stitch up the bullet wound?" Sherry asked. Ada frowned. Now that she thought about it, somebody had stitched it up. She nodded her head. "Who?" Ada didn't know.

---

"Leon," Angela said softly, walking over to the agent who still stood in the kitchen. He looked over at her, his light blue eyes asking her silent questions. "…We're going back to D.C. And…And I know that's a stupid idea and everything but…if Curtis really is out there, I don't know if I can take fighting him again… It hurt so much, last time. To realize that my brother was that monster… I just don't want to be here when he shows up again. You understand right?"

He didn't understand, actually. His sibling hadn't been turned into a bloodthirsty vicious monster. So, of course he didn't understand. But he nodded anyway. It seemed like the polite thing to do, really.

"We want you to come with us," Angela continued. Leon stared at her before his thoughts turned to Sherry and Ada. The two of them, though strong, had been treating him like he was the leader of the fight they were tackling. And although he disagreed with that, he wasn't about to leave them to fight for their own.

"I can't," he said steadily. She stared at him, her eyes overcome with sadness immediately. "I'm sorry Angela. I can't tell you or Claire not to go. I'll say it's a very bad idea but you're both capable adults. But I can't leave Ada or Sherry alone to fight that th…your brother on their own."

Angela nodded sadly and backed off. She walked away to join Claire, who was waiting by the door with Rani and their bags. "Good luck Leon. You'll need it," Claire said stiffly. Leon wanted to scoff and tell her that _she _was the one entering D.C. But he remained quiet. He only wished they would leave Rani behind. The girl wasn't adept at fighting off the undead. Leon kept his mouth shut though.

"See you Leon," Angela said and with that, the three walked out of the hotel room.

---

Ada was cleaning her and Leon's guns when the agent walked into the room. He cast her a somber look before sitting in his chair. Sherry had walked out moments before to see if the three others had left and now with Leon looking the way he did, Ada guessed it was safe to assume that they had left.

"Leon," she said softly, laying the guns and their pieces on the floor. He looked up at her as she stood. "I never got to…ask…" Something crashed outside and both agent and assassin tensed up immediately. Ada almost dropped to the floor and grabbed the guns and their pieces.

But then Sherry called, "I dropped something! It was me! Calm down killers!" Ada saw a weak smile flicker across Leon's lips and he collapsed back into the chair. Ada relaxed and walked over to him. She blocked his view and he looked up at her with something close to curiosity on his face.

_Has he _ever _feared me?_

"Who stitched up the bullet wounds?" she asked, looking down at him. Sure, Claire was in Terra-Save and more than likely had something medical knowledge. Angela probably had basic field medic training. But neither of the women was likely to save Ada's life. So, that left a man and a child.

He gave her a confused look but after she watched him for a few minutes he shrugged and said, "I did. They give us field medic training once you enter Secret Service."

"I know," she remarked. She noticed the way he cringed slightly at his mistake. The idea of her being Secret Service was no doubt going to take a while to lock itself in place in his mind. "Why?"

He stood and she almost stepped back. They were standing incredibly close and he actually had to look down at her. "Why what?" he asked.

"Why did you save me? Why didn't you let me die? I was murdering people and at that time, you probably thought I was going after all of you. You could've left me there, in the alley, to bleed to death. And everything would've been fine. The outbreaks still would've occurred. The assassins they sent for you would've disappeared like they have. But you saved me. Why?" She noticed the look in his eyes. Sorrow and bitter anger combined in his eyes. At her? At himself? At something else?

"I just did. I always save people," he replied. He started to move forward but Ada lifted her hands and planted them on Leon's chest, stopping him.

"Would you save Wesker if he was dieing? What about one of his mercenaries?" she asked icily. "Because for all you knew, I was no better than Wesker or his toy soldiers."

"I knew you," he replied, again trying to step forward.

"That's not a good reason," she argued. "You knew me, yes. You knew that I was an assassin. That I was a spy. That I'd tricked you in Raccoon. That I was a liar and a backstabber."

"No you weren't," he mumbled. She stared at him but he lowered his gaze to the floor. She wasn't going to get answers out of him. She lowered her gaze as well but stepped forward, her arms wrapping around him.

_Say it, say it, say it, say it, say it, say it, say it, say it _now_!_

"Leon I l-"

Somebody knocked on the door.

---

"Who is it?" Sherry asked, holding her Desert Eagle behind her back.

"It's Angela. I'm not going to D.C."

A/N: Don't hate me! It's my birthday! You can't hate me! Anyway… Oh, look at this guys. Today is my eighteenth birthday and today is also the eighteenth chapter. Isn't that crazy? But yeah…really…don't hate me… I had to do it!


	19. Chapter 19

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 19th---

Angela looked like she was going to cry. That was the only reason Leon walked over to her where she sat in the hallway and asked her what was wrong. Had she not looked so depressed, he never would've asked. He never would've gotten himself into her personal business.

"You okay?" he asked gently, looking at the blonde woman as she scrubbed at her eyes with her hand. She tensed up at his voice but her head moved up and down. She was lying. Simple as that. He knew Ada, the queen of lying. Angela was obviously upset. "No you're not."

"Okay," she said, standing from her seat on the floor. "You're right. I'm not okay. I'm less then okay. I'm pissed, I'm depressed, I'm afraid," she said in one breath. "I was just… He can't be alive Leon…" He wanted to back off at that moment. He knew what he was getting himself into was not something he liked to deal with but he didn't move.

"Curtis?" the agent questioned. Angela nodded. "_He's _not. The monster is."

"Sounds familiar. You told me he wasn't Curtis in the Dome," Angela pointed out, her eyes slightly angry. It almost reminded the agent of when she'd grabbed his jacket in fury after she'd found out about the T-Virus antidote. Leon shrugged, completely ignoring the anger in her eyes and keeping a mostly neutral face.

"I made a mistake. But trust me. If there was one thing that upset all of us the most, it was the fact that Sherry's father wouldn't stop when it came to hunting after her. Sherry. His daughter. Flesh and blood. And yet he wasn't the man he'd once been. He was just a monster," he replied. Angela looked down, her eyes glistening. His mother had always scolded him on being terrible at comforting people. Sure, he could. But he wasn't very good at it.

"I was just…just hoping that…you know, Curtis was himself… That he'd returned to normal and he could actually go back to being Curtis. Stupid hope, huh?" Angela laughed bitterly. Her eyes were still glistening but the anger at her brother's sad fate was replacing the tears. Her eyes fell from his.

"Everybody hopes for the impossible every now and then," Leon disagreed. He almost pictured the dark underground laboratories that were underneath Raccoon City, a slender woman at his side with a wide smile on her face as he cracked another of his stupid jokes.

_I did… I do…_

She looked up at him, her dark blue eyes latching onto his much lighter ones. "Have you, Leon?" she asked. He could almost feel cool fingers entwining with his as the slender woman tugged him away from the dangerous grasp of an undead.

_Say no… Say it… _

"No," he lied. He'd gotten good at lying and that wasn't something he was particularly proud of. In fact, it was something he didn't like at all. Ada was the only one who could call him out on his lies. And that wasn't a good thing. "I don't."

"Then how can you say that?" she whispered, her eyes not as bloodshot as the tears started to fade away.

"I'm different then most people. I lost my ability to hope and dream seven years ago," he explained. More lies. His hopes and dreams had only started because of that city. Before that, he hadn't really had hopes and dreams. They were all just wishful thinking before that.

She suddenly stepped forward, her hand reaching up and brushing against his neck. Everything in him begged that he back away, reject her attempts, especially when he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. But when Angela pressed her lips to his, it was too late. All he could do was listen as a door suddenly swished open and slammed shut afterwards.

---Washington D.C., January 19th---

"You're going to let them come here?" somebody cried.

"What if they're infected?" another whimpered.

"What if they attract the fucking zombies to us?" somebody shrieked.

"Oh, shut the fuck up," Graham groaned.

He turned his attention to the massive crowd watching him and his daughter. Ashley had just told the survivors that she and two Secret Service members would be waiting in the White House for them so they could all go down to the Bunker together. Graham knew it was going to take a while for the survivors to arrive but he wasn't about to try and convince Ashley to stay inside. She was strong, hardheaded. She didn't take bullshit from anybody, not even the most powerful man on the planet.

"You're letting them in," somebody snarled. "How can we shut up?! There's a chance they'll kill us all!"

"What's life without a few chances?" Graham chuckled, shrugging and smiling at the same time. A Secret Service member in the crowd glared at him emptily. He guessed the only reason nobody had questioned his authority was because he was still technically the President and the Secret Service, though upset with him, were still his body guards.

"Safer…" his wife mumbled from his side. Graham's smile fell.

---

"We're going to be okay," Ark promised Lily, who stood next to him.

She stared out into the few undead that surrounded them with no emotions on her face. He didn't want to know what she was thinking. Lott had stopped trying to talk to his sister and as night approached, Ark found himself worrying for the young man. He hadn't seen him all day.

"Can't believe we were that lucky," Jonathon admitted at his side. Ark smiled and nodded sadly. A soft crack echoed into the dead silence that surrounded them and an undead collapsed to the ground. The Marine who'd shot the creature lowered his gun with a triumphant look in his eyes.

"How long do you think it's going to take to get there?" Ark finally asked, looking over the large crowd of civilians, soldiers, and agents that followed him and Gerry. He worried how many people would end up getting eaten or bit at least.

"About…half a day if we walk all day tomorrow. The White House is only about ten miles from here but because we're slow and we're going to need breaks, it will take a bit longer than usual," Jonathon replied. He looked down at Lily, something close to sadness and pity appearing in his eyes.

"We'll make it?" Ark questioned, glancing down at Lily too. If he didn't know better, he would've said she was being a teenager and simply ignoring the patronizing adults near her.

"Yeah. We've got the ammo and the will. If anybody's to be worried about it's those who seemed to be stressed out. And I mean the ones that are…well…like Lily," Jonathon stated, his eyes lifting and focusing on the world around them, which was beginning to turn black as the sun set.

---Harvardville, January 20th---

"Leon…" a soft voice whispered. The agent was hardly asleep, even though she obviously thought so since his eyes were closed and he looked relaxed, and he opened his eyes. He cast the young woman in front of him a questioning look. "I…um… I thought you'd like to know… I haven't seen Ada since yesterday."

He froze. He hadn't either. The last time he'd seen her had been half an hour before Angela kissed him. Then she'd vanished. He'd just thought that, with Claire gone, she'd decided to spend more time outside and be free. But he doubted that now. She would've returned by the time Sherry was up and about.

"What? Have you looked for her?" he asked. She shook her head sadly. "Shit… Search the room. We have to find her."

---

Angela wanted to say she wasn't jealous. But since Leon and Sherry had spent the last four hours searching for the assassin instead of trying to help her cope with the fact that her brother was out there, hunting for her, she was jealous. Incredibly so.

"Maybe she decided to stay out of the room today," Angela tried as she walked back from the room she and Claire had shared. "And she just forgot to say anything."

"She doesn't forget things," Sherry argued, her blonde hair messy. She'd been walking the entire apartment, hardly ever stopping. Leon had done pretty much the same.

"Okay, so she's gone. What's the big deal?" Angela asked. She truly didn't understand why they cared about the cold-blooded murderer so much. She could personally care less about the assassin's fate.

"We need Ada to help us," Leon suddenly said. Angela secretly wondered if that was the first time he'd ever said the assassin's name in front of her. "She's the best of the best. We need her help, Angela. Especially if we're going to be fighting your brother again." She sighed and lowered her gaze.

_Of course._

---

The bedroom was dark but Leon doubted Ada was hiding in there. He'd searched it over several times, hoping that maybe Ada had just ended up falling asleep somewhere in the room for some reason. But his thorough searches got him nothing in return.

He turned to leave when he spotted something near the couch that he'd been using as his bed since the chair near the actual bed wasn't very comfortable. The something was a woman, a woman he knew all too well. She was sitting with her back up against the wall, her knees tucked to her chest with her head resting on them and her arms wrapped around her legs.

"Ada?" he whispered, walking over to her. She tensed up and lifted her eyes. In the faint light in the room he noticed the sleepy look in her eyes. But he also noticed the red veins streaking through the white sclera. He knelt before her, his chest clenching painfully.

_She _was _sleeping… But…has she been crying?_

The mere idea of the incredibly strong woman crying hurt physically and mentally. But he didn't think about that any more than necessary. He reached out to touch her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, but her eyes darkened furiously and her hand snapped up with the speed, and ferocity, of a cobra and batted his hand away. He almost imagined he could feel the sting of a cobra's teeth sinking into his skin at Ada's reaction.

"What's wrong?" he asked, more than confused and just a tad hurt. She stared at him angrily, her green eyes blazing with the emotion as if it was a normal emotion for the typically calm tempered woman. "Ada, talk to me," he, to some extent, begged. Her silence was beginning to worry him.

"Leave me alone," she ordered, her voice choked by tears. Leon wanted to continue to question her but her eyes said everything. He remembered the day before when Angela had kissed him, how somebody had slammed the door nearby. She'd seen him.

_No wonder she's pissed… You've been selectively making out with the both of them. Dear ol' mom would be proud._

"Ada I'm-"

"Just leave me alone," she snapped, suddenly lunging forward and using the palms of her hands to knock him away. He barely managed to stop himself from falling over and Ada stood, towering above him. Tears fell from her eyes.

_She's…crying…_

He'd seen tears on her face when she'd been in Rani's aunt's room. But these tears were falling freely. He felt his chest constrict and hated himself. Hated. He stood as well and before he could truly react, she slapped him. But the sting of the physical attack was nothing compared to what he felt inside. Ada, however, looked shocked at what she'd done.

"Leon…" she started. He shook his head, silencing her. But that didn't take away the mixed emotions in her eyes. He saw anger, sorrow, and fear. And he only wondered what the fear was caused by.

"No, I deserved that," he assured though the stinging in his face disagreed. She shook her head, her raven hair falling into her face messily. He resisted the urge to reach out and brush it away as he asked, "If not, why did you slap me?"

"I…I wasn't thinking," she lied stiffly, her eyes flickering away from his. He silently noted that she used to be able to hold his eyes when she lied to him.

"Right," he said sarcastically. "…What were you doing in here?"

_As if I don't already know._

"Nothing. I just sat down next to the couch and I fell asleep," she lied again. He narrowed his eyes at her but the assassin wasn't looking at him so she wasn't even affected by him. However, her eyes did suddenly move, focusing on his face. Probably on the mark she'd left. She reached out, her cool fingers brushing over his hot face, and she succeeded in thoroughly confusing the agent.

_Is she mad at me or not?_

"That's not what happened," Leon said. Her hand fell from his face and she looked down at the ground.

"Partially," she replied. "I never tell full lies, Leon."

"Then what _really _happened?" he asked, shifting his weight uncomfortably. He wasn't certain he wanted to hear. And when her eyes met his again, a cold fury blazing in her green irises, he _knew_ he didn't want to hear.

"What do you think?" she asked, her voice a low growl.

This time, he lowered his gaze. He knew. He'd known from the beginning. It was what had happened with Angela. But what he wouldn't say was the fact he was confused and worried. Confused because he did harbor feelings for both Angela and Ada. And worried because…unlike the assassin before him, Angela offered a promise to be normal. She offered the normalcy he'd longed for since Raccoon City, though he knew that he would hate it if he got it.

And Ada assured more running, more worries, more fears. But she also assured that constant rush of adrenaline that had become his drug for the last seven years. And…well…she was Ada Wong. He'd had nightmares about her for years, even after Spain. He'd had stupid little dreams were they ended up happily together with a family. Those dreams hadn't occurred for any other woman. Not even Angela.

"I'm sorry," he finally mumbled. His chest ached something terrible and he wanted to back out of the room. He wanted to play the coward. But the fury in Ada's eyes, in her stance, disappeared at his statement.

"No," she mumbled, sorrow replacing the fury. "I'm sorry I misinterpreted things."

_What does that mean?_

She started to walk to the door and Leon feared that the entire conversation, like many before, was about to die and they would simply treat it like it never happened. As she reached out for the doorknob, Leon took his chance.

_Never the brave one Kennedy…_

As she opened the door he walked over and placed his hand, above her right shoulder, onto the door and pushed it closed. She tensed up and so did he, worried that she might strike at him, but before she could question his motives, he breathed, "I love you."

---Washington D.C., January 20th---

"There she is!" somebody amongst the crowd cried.

Ark looked up and smiled at the most beautiful sight in the world; the White House. She still stood proudly, her white walls glistening in the afternoon sun as the clouds disappeared east. Ark and Gerry started towards the massive building, their eyes moving cautiously as they walked. They didn't need any surprises.

"You said they'd be waiting for us?" Jonathon questioned from behind Ark.

"Ashley said that she and a couple others would be waiting for us either inside the White House or close to the front door," Gerry replied, casting a look over his shoulder. Ark couldn't help but hope that Claire and Leon would be there, having come back to D.C. from Harvardville before the outbreak. He doubted it though.

"What took you guys so long?" teased a young female voice. Ashley Graham and two Secret Service agents stood before the White House. The agents looked everywhere, their eyes searching for the zombies that would, no doubt, soon plague the White House lawn.

Nobody responded to Ashley's question however. Instead the large crowd broke into victorious shouts and several burst into tears. The soldiers, still tense and searching for the undead, wore huge smiles. They refused to cry though and Ark had to respect them for that. Even he had a few tears on his face.

He heard Lott cheering with somebody behind him but when a small hand clasped to his, he didn't care about anybody else. He looked down and to his amazement Lily stared back up at him.

"We're safe?" she asked, her eyes as bright and intelligent as always.

He couldn't help but grin and reply, "We're safe."

A/N: So, I know one person who's going to hate me today because of the way I left Leon and Ada's section… Please don't. I'm running out of time to write this morning and I couldn't do anything except wait another day to update. (And I apologize about how late this is. Been pretty busy these last couple days…)


	20. Chapter 20

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 20th---

Ada's shoulders tensed up and she didn't turn around to face them. Leon backed off, his hand falling to his side and his eyes dropping and landing on the carpet below his black boots. She didn't move and he had a bad feeling she wasn't really breathing either. He regretted saying the simple sentence, those three words that could've just ruined his life.

_Idiot, idiot, idiot._

He repeated the mantra in his head, listening to the birds chirping outside. Somewhere deep in his mind he wondered if the birds knew what was happening to their world. He wondered if they knew that the virus was tearing their world to pieces. And he wondered if they knew the internal dilemma Leon was encountering. And if they did know, did they care?

"What…wh…what did you say?" she suddenly whispered, tearing Leon from his thoughts about the birds outside. He lifted his head and looked at her tensed up back. She was once again wearing one of Angela's shirts, a dark blue one that was an actual T-Shirt. Ada just didn't look right in the blue fabric.

He realized he needed to answer her question but his mouth refused to move and his vocal cords decided to fail him. He just stared at her, through her, before letting his gaze fall to the floor again.

"Leon…" she whispered, her voice sounding as choked as it had earlier. The agent in him growled that he needed to stop being so afraid and just repeat what he said. But the man in him reminded that this was, literally, the woman of his dreams and that he'd likely just ruined whatever relationship they already had.

"Leon?" Angela called. Ada suddenly startled him by backing off from the door, her fists clenched at her sides tightly enough that thin lines of blood dribbled from her palms.

"Go away," she snarled, startling the agent. "Just go away."

"Leave them alone," Sherry continued for Ada, her voice heavily muffled by the door.

Leon stepped forward suddenly and gently took Ada's right hand, where bright crimson blood spilled freely from her palms. She turned to him, the fury in her eyes vanishing and replaced by shock as he gently opened her hand.

"You don't need weapons if you can do this," he gently teased. Her fingernails had bit into her flesh, cutting her deeply enough that a continuous stream of blood oozed from her skin. A weak smile flickered across Ada's face but the tears in her eyes made him return to silence.

He led her to the bathroom and turned the faucet on for her, letting her hold her hands carefully beneath the cool water that spilled out. Bright crimson washed down the drain and showed the somewhat deep cuts she'd made.

"You can't hate her that much," he gently said, looking at Ada's face. Dark anger flickered across her eyes and she removed her hands from the water. Her emerald eyes met his again.

"What did you say?" she suddenly whispered, the anger disappearing from her eyes and replaced by…

_Hope?_

---Washington D.C., January 20th---

"This shit's amazing," a soldier said as he shoved more of his steak into his mouth. Ark stared at the young man as he ate his steak happily. Many of the people in the room were eating their food so fast they didn't even have time to truly taste it.

"It is," Gerry agreed gently, carefully cutting his steak and chewing on it carefully, savoring the taste of the meat. "Where did you guys get these?"

"We replace the stock of meat and vegetables every year," President Graham explained. He sat at the huge dining table with them and while Ark would've loved that, sitting at the same table as the most powerful man in the world, he noticed something eerily…off about Graham's eyes.

"Amazing," Gerry breathed as he carefully dragged his final hunk of steak through a smeared pile of barbeque sauce. "You guys were ready for the apocalypse."

"Pretty much, yeah," Graham chuckled.

The table fell into silence and Ark carefully chewed on his piece of steak. He found himself looking around, hoping to catch sight of a familiar blond man or a familiar redhead. But he couldn't see Leon or Claire. Finally, he turned his gaze back to Graham, who was staring into space thoughtfully.

"Mr. President," Ark finally said. The man looked over at him and Ark felt something in him squirm. The President's eyes looked…insane. "Leon…"

"Hasn't returned," Graham said calmly, interrupting Ark's sentence. "But I have no doubt that he and the others are healthy and warm and safe in Harvardville."

---

_This was a terrible mistake._

Claire was far from healthy, warn, and safe. She and Rani trudged through the muck filled streets of D.C., stepping over garbage and avoiding any and all carcasses. Rani was tired, her feet dragging over the asphalt as she tried to keep up with her redheaded companion. Claire regretted bringing the young girl with her.

"Claire, can we stop?" Rani asked, her voice weak from lack of water.

She and Rani had arrived in D.C. six hours ago. They'd been dropped off by a bus driver who was being employed to take people to and from D.C., as long as they weren't infected. She and Rani had boarded the bus four miles out of Harvardville and had arrived in the infested remains of the Nation's capital. They didn't have the proper materials and they were beginning to slowly succumb to fatigue.

"No sweetie," Claire replied, her eyes landing on Rani's dirty face. "Just a bit longer."

Claire took another step forward and bright lights flashed into her eyes, temporarily blinding her.

---Harvardville, January 20th---

_Where is my sister? Is she okay? Is she even in the city anymore? I haven't seen her… Why do I want her so badly? What's going on? Why am I hungry? Why do I feel like…like…Angela is the only thing that will keep me going… Where am I? What am I doing? What's going on?_

---Washington D.C., January 20th---

"What's your name?!" somebody shouted. Rani cowered next to Claire's leg and she gently squeezed the child's shoulder but kept her eyes shut. The light still reached her eyes, shining through her eyelids.

"Claire Redfield and Rani Chawla!"

"What are you doing here?!"

"We're looking for somewhere safe!"

"Why here?!"

"Because it's D.C. and I was hoping to go to the White House!"  
The light shut off suddenly and lights flashed behind Claire's eyelids. She opened her eyes and blinked a couple times, watching as a duo of soldiers walked towards her. Their faces were two pale blobs, stark against the black shadows of the buildings they'd been standing near.

"Today's your lucky day Claire," the taller soldier said. "We'll take you to the White House."

"Really?" she whispered, amazed. Rani leaned against Claire's leg, her exhaustion showing through even more now that they were promised safety.

---Harvardville, January 20th---

"You heard me," he breathed in response. She stared at him however, her eyes seemingly tearing through his body and peering into his soul. He felt his eyes fall from hers and he stared at the cold white sink that had droplets of crimson blood on it.

"I did…but…" she started, before her hand suddenly reached out and the back of her fingers brushed against his cheek. He lifted his eyes to meet hers and found himself losing a battle he'd already lost before.

_Back in a bathroom…with Ada…nothing good will come from this._

He heard Angela and Sherry snapping at each other but when he grabbed the hem of Ada's shirt and tugged her to him, the two blondes outside of the bathroom disappeared. His lips pressed to hers and her hands instantly reached up, her fingers entwining themselves with his hair like she seemed to always do. He wrapped his arms around her waist and gently crushed her to his chest, successfully deepening the kiss. Ada pressed herself as close to him as possible.

They broke the kiss and leaned their foreheads together, their eyes closed and their breathing rough. He didn't dare release her and he was immensely grateful that Sherry was now ordering Angela to keep away from the door that led to Leon and Ada's room.

The assassin's hands suddenly freed themselves from his hair and gently slid down to rest on his chest. "Might not be such a great idea to do that with how badly cut my hands are," Ada gently whispered. A weak smile tugged at Leon's lips.

"Yeah, that's true," he agreed. Sherry shouted at Angela again and suddenly the sound of a door slamming was heard. Leon guessed Angela had decided to storm out of the house.

Leon gently kissed Ada on the lips again, his hands careful as he slid his hands under her shirt. She returned the kiss eagerly and they broke apart again. This time, Leon hugged her and rested his lips on her shoulder, the fabric of the shirt rough against his face. Ada leaned her forehead onto his shoulder.

"Please…repeat what you said," she finally whispered. Leon felt his chest constrict. What they were doing…was that attraction or was it the need for human contact, the need for sex? He didn't feel like it was the second thing and he dearly hoped it was the first thing. So, he decided to ignore the fear in him.

"I love you Ada… I have…for a long time… And every time you walked away from me in Spain…hurt…badly. And I thought that because you decided to take the sample, even though you saved me too, that I should move on… Angela…was the one I decided that with… But God knows…she was just a replacement for you. The situation…Harvardville…was too close to Raccoon. I connected her to you. I created a false bond to replace the one I had with you in Raccoon… It was hardly… I didn't even feel anything for her, no matter how many times I tried to convince myself I did."

Many people told Leon that getting something off his chest would feel good but as Ada remained silent he felt a sense of fear gnawing at him dangerously. Suddenly, her fingers curled into her palms, successfully getting two handfuls of his shirt in her fists.

"Why… I… You… Wh…" She shook her head against his shoulder, a weak laugh escaping her lips. She suddenly pulled out of the embrace, releasing his shirt, and reached up to grasp his face and made him look at her. Though her face was pretty much emotionless, her eyes glistened with something he could only describe as joy. "I love you."

---

Sherry sighed as Angela disappeared down the street and out of the teen's sight from her position in the window. She walked away from the window and walked over to the couch, plopping down onto the welcoming furniture.

Angela was pissed, God only knew what Leon and Ada were doing, and Sherry was bored. Ada was safe and that was definitely a plus. Leon was spending time with her, another plus since the teen was hoping they'd just get together already. She'd had enough of watching the eye sex they were 'secretly' having. And Angela was gone, which was another plus. However, these things also made it so Sherry had nobody to talk to and nobody to interact with.

"Joy," she whispered and lay down on the couch, stretching lazily.

_As long as that monster doesn't get a hold of Angela…everything's fine. …Wait…Angela…isn't she… Oh fuck me._

---Washington D.C., January 20th---

"Claire?" Ark asked, standing from where he and Lily had been laying. He stared at the messy and exhausted looking redhead and felt a smile grow on his lips. But the smile faltered as he noticed that the only one with Claire was Rani.

_Where's Leon? Or Angela? Hell, the assassin?_

"Ark!" she said happily, rushing down to meet him. They walked to each other and met in an embrace. She reeked of the city, of death and decay, but he ignored that, simply glad to see she was alright.

"You're both okay?" Ark asked as he pulled away from Claire. He looked down at Rani, who smiled up at him even though she looked dead tired.

"Yeah. Just a bit tired, right Rani?" Claire replied, ruffling the small girl's hair. Ark couldn't help but keep smiling until he remembered the lack of people. The smile fell and Claire looked at him silently.

"Where's Leon? Or Angela?" he asked gently.

Claire looked away from him and he wasn't certain if he wanted to hear what was going on.

---

Ashley stared at the people that now lived in the Bunker before looking over at her father. The man walked around pleasantly, his eyes every now and then flickering over to look at Downing. The British man was sleeping, his ashen face aimed at the ceiling and his silver hair limp with sweat.

Ashley didn't want her father to go near the British man. Graham was obviously not completely sane and she worried that he was going to start taking his anger out on the wounded man. But Ashley was also worried about what would happen if Claire Redfield saw Downing. She knew that Claire and even Leon had personal anger problems towards Downing because of the Harvardville outbreak and Ashley believed that the last thing they needed anymore was somebody killing another person.

---Harvardville, January 20th---

Angela stormed furiously down the street, her blonde hair in a loose ponytail that danced freely in the wind. She didn't really know where she was going as long as she got away from Leon and Sherry and that bitch, the assassin.

_What the hell?! We kiss and then he disappears into a room with her?! What the hell?! …Why do I even care… He's a man. Like all the others. He's just going to break my heart._

She refused to let herself cry. She'd lost her brother. She'd lost Greg. She wasn't going to lose Leon because she never had Leon. She didn't want Leon.

_Bullshit. I do want him. …God… Do I… Do I actually…actually love him?_

No, that was ridiculous. She barely knew him. And although he'd saved her life several times over, she didn't think they had enough to be in love.

She slammed into something wet and slimy and scaly and huge and she stumbled back. Angela's blue eyes lifted up to stare into the hideous face that had haunted her dreams for several nights. She felt tears build in her eyes and Curtis simply stared back at her.

_Not Curtis anymore._

"Brother…" she whispered. Curtis lifted his left arm, the normal looking arm, and reached out. His long fingers wrapped around her neck and before Angela could react, he encircled her throat completely and lifted her into the air.

A/N: Short but that's what happens when I have a shitload of homework.


	21. Chapter 21

The Assassin's Bullet

---Harvardville, January 20th---

Sherry's heart pounded faster than it ever had in seven years, the thumping echoing in her ears. She almost imagined she could feel her blood pumping through her veins as she sprinted down the street, hoping she'd catch up to Angela before it was too late. But she heard the screams.

Sherry was forced to stop as the sidewalk, once mostly empty, filled with people as they tried to escape the fury of the monster Sherry knew was down there. People fled from their cars in an attempt to escape from the deadlocked traffic that had also been caused by the monster. Sherry started running again and finally spotted the horrible monster.

It was a nightmare come true. The creature resembled her father, though her father had lacked the tail and the skull that Curtis Miller sported, and it looked emptily at Angela. Its left arm, which looked somewhat normal while its left arm contained the cancer-like growth that was trademark for the G-Virus, was held horizontal to the street. Angela dangled from the creature's hand, struggling every now and then like a cat that had been caught by the back of its neck.

Sherry tore the Desert Eagle from her holster and aimed the gun at the monster's right arm, at the eye that swiveled around and around. It couldn't find a single thing to focus on but as the steal barrel of the Desert Eagle caught the rays of light spilling from the sun, it looked at the young teen holding the gun.

She pulled the trigger twice, the gun bucking in her hands viciously and the bullets tearing into the tender flesh of the eye easily. The creature released Angela, who fell to the ground limply, and thrashed around while screaming in rage and pain. Sherry clenched her jaw and knew that hell was about to break loose.

---

Leon was about to respond to the assassin, since they'd stood in silence for about five minutes, when two barely audible cracks met their ears. He felt his muscles tense up and Ada's eyes met his.

"That was…" she started.

"Sherry," he finished.

---

Angela crawled away from Curtis' stomping feet, the palms of her hands stinging as tiny pieces of asphalt and rocks penetrated her skin. Sherry was there in a moment, helping Angela stand and aiming her massive handgun at Curtis. The monster stopped thrashing, his 'normal' hand clamping onto the massive eye. Blood oozed from between his fingers and dropped to the street in steady rivers.

"Get out of here," Sherry ordered, aiming the Desert Eagle again. Her eyes, steady and cold, focused on the monster as it started for them again. Angela, however, refused to let the teenager fight the huge beast on her own.

"No," Angela replied bitterly. Sherry shot her a dark and furious look. Angela, again, refused to walk away. "You can't fight this thing on your own!"

"Maybe not but you don't even have a damned gun!" Sherry barked back.

To Angela's horror, Curtis took on a sudden burst of speed and plowed into Sherry. The small teen was thrown back several feet, landing on the asphalt and skidding to a halt. Curtis started back for Angela, his left milky colored eye staring at her emptily. Sherry, on the other hand, was hardly down. She stood, her knees wobbling for a minute or so before she regained the strength she needed, and aimed the gun at Curtis' back. She pulled the trigger four more times and only succeeded in pissing the monster off even more.

---Washington D.C., January 20th---

"We're getting this weird signal from…Harvardville," a Secret Service agent suddenly called out. President Graham, Claire, Ark, Ashley, and Rani all turned to look at him. "Cops… They're saying something about…a couple blondes taking on a…monster."

"Monster?" Rani whispered? "The thing that Sherry was telling us about?"

"You…" Claire started but then something like realization dawned on her. "They're fighting Curtis… Shit…"

"What?" Ark asked. He guessed that Curtis was Curtis Miller, the man who'd infected himself with the G-Virus. But what did he have to do with anything? He was dead.

"They're going to die," she finished.

---Harvardville, January 20th---

The last thing Leon wanted to see was Sherry opening fire on the tyrant. Ada stopped him before he could walk forward and he turned to look at her. The assassin looked like she had in Raccoon. Calm, collected, steady. She knew what they had to do.

"Let Sherry distract him. We need weapons," Ada ordered. Leon shook his head and her green eyes narrowed at him darkly. "We'll never be able to fight that thing with three handguns."

"I agree. You and Angela need to get weapons. It won't do much but Sherry needs help and you're still hurt. Go, I'll send Angela over to you," he ordered. Ada stared at him, obviously fighting herself. He smiled at her, a cocky smile that only he could wear, and she finally nodded and ran off towards the cop cars at the end of the street.

---

"Angela!"

Sherry dared not look back as the woman ran over to Leon. She focused on aiming at the monster's left eye and pulling the trigger. She emptied the clip and took a second to smash a fresh one into the gun. She aimed at the creature again but this time, somebody was at her side.

"Leon, I was wondering if you were ever going to come help me," she teased playfully. He smirked back at her and opened fire with his smaller, but faster, handgun.

"Save your ammo. That thing's ten times stronger than mine. We'll need the strength if I run out of ammo," he ordered. She nodded and lowered her gun. The Desert Eagle was extremely heavy and she wondered how, through the years, she'd carried it around like it was nothing more than a sheet of paper.

Leon emptied his clip and Sherry shot the monster as he reloaded, two more fist size holes appearing in its chest. But she watched, with some sense of scientific amazement, as the creature's deadly virus healed the wounds instantly.

"Where did Ada and Angela go?" Sherry finally asked. Leon opened fire on the monster and was forced to shout over the gun.

"I told them to find guns," he replied. Sherry chanced a glance over her shoulder and saw, down the street, Angela and Ada trying to convince the police to spare their guns.

Sherry could only hope that they'd return in time.

---

"We should be handling this," an officer told Ada stoically.

"They're government! They're trained to handle this! But we were all caught off guard and we don't have the weapons necessary to take the damned thing down!" Angela argued furiously.

The assassin stared at the officer darkly, her emerald eyes unwavering. She noticed him shift slightly and his eyes flickered back and forth between Angela and Ada. He was nervous. He obviously didn't like being stared at. So, Ada continued to stare at him.

"Give us the guns," she ordered steadily. "The shotguns. In your cars. And all of you need to go back to the police station and build up a big arsenal. Make civilians go there with you," she continued. The officer nodded dully, his eyes wide as he realized he was taking orders from her. "Go, now."

The officer and his coworkers started handing over their shotguns to Ada and Angela and a duffle bag full of shells was dropped at Ada's feet. Then, they all turned and walked to their cars, a few of them shouting 'head to the police station' to the civilians who lingered on the streets.

Ada and Angela each had two shotguns and Angela draped the duffle bag over her back. They headed back to Leon and Sherry, who were still opening fire on the monster. Angela glanced over at Ada, who noticed quietly.

"How'd you do that?" the blonde woman asked as they broke into a run to help Leon and Sherry.

"Lots of practice," Ada simply replied.

---Washington D.C., January 20th---

"What?" Ashley whimpered, obviously upset over Claire's statement. "Isn't there something we can do?"

"We wouldn't be able to do anything in time," Graham replied sadly, shaking his head slowly. Claire lowered her gaze to the floor. "It's all up to them to outfight this thing."

"They can't though," Claire repeated stubbornly. Ark glared at her, wondering why she wouldn't put any faith in her friends' abilities to fight the monster. "They will die."

"Shush," Rani hissed, listening intently as the cops continued to speak over the radio. Ark guessed they'd somehow gotten the radio wave in the Bunker. He wasn't certain if it was accidental or if the Bunker was designed to listen to radio waves so they could get the latest news.

And said latest news was that a trio of blondes and a black haired woman were fighting the monster with everything they had.

---Harvardville, January 20th---

The shotgun shells hardly did any more damage then anything else but the four refused to back off. Leon watched as Ada dropped the police issue shotgun and used her much faster nine millimeter. She glanced at him and they shared a silent smile.

"We have to retreat," Sherry suddenly growled as she stopped firing, her voice hardly audible over the roar of the shotguns. Leon stopped firing on the monster, which stood in one spot, quietly watching them. Its entire body was covered in holes and wounds and an endless fountain of blood rushed from its body.

"How?" Angela asked, following the example of Leon and Sherry. Ada lowered her handgun, her eyes focused on the monster icily. "We can't outrun him, even if we had a head start."

"Why isn't it attacking?" Ada finally asked, her fingers gripping her handgun tight enough to make her knuckles turn white. Leon glanced over at her before looking back at the monster emptily.

"I don't know…" he admitted.

"Maybe he recognizes me," Angela whispered hopefully. But Sherry's eyes burned with an empty hatred and she shook her head darkly.

"Tricking us, more likely. It's probably retained its memories from the Dome and it remembers not attacking you. How better to make your prey get closer to you than to act like you don't want to harm said prey?" the teenager coldly stated, her eyes blazing.

"Good point. But let's back away anyway," Ada offered, slowly taking a step back. Leon, Angela, and Sherry mimicked her, their steps careful and steady. The monster never once tried to follow.

_What's it doing? …What's its plan?_

---

"We've got to leave this city," Sherry said, helping Angela stuff her clothes into a suitcase. Leon and Ada stood silently watching the two, looking like two stone statues guarding them. "The monster will follow us and leave the people safe and if we can get enough of a head start on him, we'll get to D.C. before him."

"And if we don't?" Angela asked. "What if, somehow, he finds out where we're going?"

"Then we'll get there after him. We're going by bus," Sherry replied. "The same way Claire got there."

Nobody added the silent _if _Claire got there, even though they were all thinking it.

---

Angela shot them dirty looks when Leon and Ada had chosen to sit next to each other in the bus but they both chose to ignore her angry looks. Ada rested her head on Leon's shoulder and stared out of the window. The black world outside passed by silently, isolating the four of them and the two other bus riders from the rest of the world.

"You think we're going to make it to D.C.?" Ada asked suddenly, breaking the silence. Sherry was sitting behind them, sleeping, and Angela was across from them, also sleeping. She didn't care if they overhead them.

"Honestly? I always hope for the best. I always think that we're going to make it. Do you?" he asked. His arm was wrapped around her waist, the tips of his fingers gently stroking her side.

"Yeah…" she replied softly. "Yeah, I do."

"Good," he replied, suddenly kissing her on the top of the head. She snuggled even closer to him and closed her eyes.

What she hadn't added was the fact that with him, she, as cliché as it sounded, felt that everything good would happen and no more evils could touch them.

A/N: Again, blame homework for the shortness. And as a side note, this story probably won't be updated again until next week. I'm going to be dedicating myself to another story so this one will have to wait until next Monday. (Hey, be glad I didn't end this chapter with a cliffhanger.)


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